Brought to tears

Today I went to Wolf Trap in Vienna, VA for the annual performance by the US Marine Corps band, followed by the Carol sing along. It's a big theater that is roofed but it is wide open and has no walls. So visitors bundle up, drink their hot chocolate or cider, and jingle their little bells and join together in singing classic holiday tunes. Well I have no idea what got into me but I had to hold myself back from tears with every single song that was sung. I'm not sure if it was the emotion built up from reading Iraqi blogs and realizing how good I have it here or because of the shock I experienced yesterday after hearing personal stories about America's deadly healthcare system when watching SiCKO. Or maybe it's because I saw all the little children in the audience who looked so darn cute and happy and it made wish I was in their innocent shoes again. But then I realized that much of the emotion could have been because Wolf Trap Carol Sing is dependent on the community to create the atmosphere and fill the theater with love, joy, generosity other good spirits. It was this environment that reminded me of Emma Willard, a gracious and spirited community that I left about one month ago.

The holiday season was my favorite time of the school year because it was jam packed with celebrations and traditions unique to the school. The campus, which already felt like a movie set daily, becomes even more magical when the snow falls, and as students anticipate the performance of all the seniors in Revels. I can't remember the name of this one event in the video but I remember feeling so blessed to be a part of this beautiful community. There is a brief choir concert in the chapel and then every lights their individual candles and shuffles out into the cold. All surround the senior triangle in the center of campus and the choir stands tall over the crowd on the steps of the chapel. Granted it was quite frigid, but the combination of their singing, the tall and glowing gothic buildings, and the immensity of the crowd gave me the chills. I miss it all.