No Pain No Gain

I remember when the Olympics were in Atlanta in '96. I was thrilled when Mom and Dad decided that this would be our summer vacation. We made the three hour trek numerous times to see Field Hockey, Volleyball, Baseball (back when they still had it), Track and Field, Water Polo, and my brother and I went to the Ocoee River for Kayaking. Sure, it was kind of a hassle--a bit expensive, early wakeup times, a lot of driving, and some pretty significant traffic situations. But so, so worth it.

I went back to college that fall and was surprised to find out that there were people who lived right in Atlanta who didn't attend a single event! It just seemed like too much trouble, so they didn't bother. When people try to wrap their brain around the idea of taking a symphony orchestra to another country, usually one of two reactions takes place. They either say,"Sheesh! Why?!" or they know so little about what we do, they can't grasp the size of the undertaking. After teaching orchestra for 6 years allow me to put it into perspective. Taking the kids to Carowinds for a day is an achievement. Going to (and returning safely from...) Europe is heroic.

I say all this because last night we had an Adult Travelers Meeting where we discussed the ins and outs of traveling with a group. There are a zillion things to consider, and unlike a 4-5 person family vacation where you can sometimes "wing it," everything must be planned in advance because of numbers. Meals, medicine, beds, money, finding fun things to do each day, passports, flights, buses.

Ah, but hold on. We're not just any group. We're a public school orchestra.

Instruments, stands, stools, tuners, music, electrical equipment, a podium, venues where we can perform, concert programs, uniforms, percussion equipment, instrument repair kits. If you started to really think about all the work that goes into one of these trips, you could easily talk yourself out of doing it.

But we're in good hands. We had a nice meeting (with some phenomenal banana pudding) and this is going to be a fantastic trip. The itinerary looks great, the people traveling are all really excited, and the music continues to improve each time the kids get together. I think we all know that this hasn't been an easy trip to plan, and there have been a few times when it probably would have been simpler to just throw in the towel. Yet here we are with less than two weeks before we touch down in Frankfurt. It may have been kind of a hassle and an expense, and we still have some hard work to do. But in the end? It will be so, so worth it!

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