June 21, 2019 – Day 5
Good morning everyone! It's not raining! Host families were dropping the youth off at the church, our awesome luggage crew were loading up the bus and sleepy kids were finding their favorite spot on the bus to sit and snooze. We have traveled as far west as we are going to travel on our tour. It is also the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. We are approaching the last few days of our trip and it is usually the time on tour when the weariness begins to set in. The first timers are starting to realize that if you stay up late every night and don’t go to bed in a timely manner, your body will pay the price. If you don’t eat a well-balanced meal and consume sugary drinks and junk food every day, you won’t feel well. You will also be tired and irritable. They are also realizing that traveling on tour expends a tremendous amount of energy every day between traveling, walking, singing and performing. It's something that everyone has to learn, even the adults – being responsible for yourself. Some are learning it faster than others, but never fear - there is plenty of time and it's never too late.
Our morning Greeters today were Scott Hembrough and Matthew Baldridge. Since this was the first time we have stayed in host homes, it was an opportunity to share breakfast reports. Breakfast in host homes can be hit or miss. Some hosts provide a simple self-service box of cereal or donuts. Others provide a hot cooked breakfast. The reports this morning were very positive, ranging from egg and potato casserole, bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, biscuits, chocolate chip waffles, poppy seed bread and butter braids. Everyone seemed full and satisfied.
Fork stories were next. We had two contestants today. Angela Nardone told a funny story about dragging her suitcase across a carpet in her host home, but when the carpet ended and turned into tile, she slipped and accidentally knocked her suitcase into the wall. The wheels of her suitcase punched a hole in the wall. She was going to tell her host but they went swimming in a nearby lake and she forgot. (She eventually ‘fessed up later on and all was well.) The next story was experienced by Anna Mae Black, Ali Shipe, and Anja Grossberger.
They stayed in a bedroom that had a life-sized, real looking doll named Jenny. The people would dress it and change her clothes. They thought it was creepy at first but then they grew fond of Jenny and didn’t mind sleeping in the same room with her. The woman also had 2 pet dogs and 3 cats. One of the cats had been bitten in the head by a snake and has been “mentally challenged” ever since. That evening, one of the girls accidentally knocked a shelf in the bathroom sideways and couldn’t fix it. Before she could confess to her hostess, she heard the woman go into the bathroom and mutter under her breath about the darn cat breaking the shelf. At that point, she decided not to confess! This story brought so many laughs that it won the coveted fork prize. Be sure to check out the picture of Jenny on the blog!
Our first stop today was in Louisville. Doug and Beth Taylor taught us how to pronounce it like the locals do (Loo-uh- vill.) Louisville is Kentucky’s largest city, situated along the Ohio River. We were headed for the Louisville Slugger Museum and factory, where baseball is celebrated and Major League baseball bats are produced. Outside of the museum was a giant Louisville Slugger, where we stopped to pose for a picture. Our tour of the factory began with a movie about the forests and mills where the selection process begins for making the bats. I was shocked to realize how many trees are continually being cut down to produce these bats! We saw maple, ash and birch trees that were selected because of the grain of the wood and the durability. Then we were able to walk through the factory production line to see each step in the bat-making process. At the end of the tour, each person was given a mini-bat to keep as a souvenir. Inside the museum were galleries of memorabilia and exhibits; a Bat Vault with 3,000 original bat models created by legendary players (like Babe Ruth and Ted Williams); a signature wall with thousands of signatures from players who signed contracts with Louisville Slugger; an opportunity to hold bats that were actually used by great players (Mickey Mantle, Johnny Bench, Derek Jeter, David "Big Papi" Ortiz, etc.) and a batting cage. Several of our youth took advantage of the batting cage. The entire museum was a very interesting look into the world of baseball.
Afterward, we broke up into small groups to have lunch in the city before getting back on the bus. Our afternoon Greeters were Aiden Cappeluti and Amber Johnson. Our destination was Greencastle, Indiana.
Karalee Turner-Little has been teaching us “rural” words each day. She grew up in a rural area in Tennessee and is an expert. So far we have learned:
- lollygag – Ex: If it's time to go, don't lollygag!
- Mash – Ex: Mash that button on the elevator for me.
- Fixn' – Ex: I've been fixn' to go welcome that new neighbor.
- Nub- Ex: If you touch my chocolate cake, you'll draw back a nub!
- (And my favorite): Good Lord willing and the creek don’t rise, I'll see you next week.
Speaking of rising creeks, as we were driving along we saw signs of the same rainy weather we have seen for the past several days. Many cornfields we passed were flooded and looked like swamp land. The river levels have risen and the ground is saturated everywhere we go. I feel sorry for the farmers.
We reached DePauw University late afternoon. Doug and Beth Taylor graduated (and fell in love) here. Their daughter Alli graduated from here and now Bryce just completed his first year here too. Bryce is majoring in Music Education with an emphasis in voice.
DePauw has a Methodist heritage and has a renowned School of Music, thanks to a series of large donations from Washington C. DePauw, for whom the school is named after. Bryce took our group on a tour of the campus, which was beautifully landscaped with historic structures and unique architecture. The tour was cut short because of rain, but Bryce was still able to show me the awesome School of Music. It has a theater, an auditorium, a recital hall, soundproof practice rooms, a music library, teaching studios and recording studios. Basically, anything a music major could possibly want is there.
Our performance tonight was being held at Gobin Memorial UMC, located right on campus. Bryce has a job there as their music director! He was very excited that some of his choir members would be there tonight. The church graciously provided us with a taco dinner and then our group met in the sanctuary to rehearse. Polly helped to guide the students into the right frame of mind for their performance, encouraging them to close their eyes and let go of anything that might be troubling them. We all sat there soaking in the quiet, slowing our breath and calming our minds. Sometimes we all need to slow down and remember that God should be in control, not us. Polly quoted something Matthew Sleeth said this week – When you work, you work. When you pray, God works. We ended with a prayer, ready for the performance. And what a performance! The high energy was felt by everyone and the singing was superb. Bryce invited his choir members to join the CWS for one of our songs and they were happy to do so. I have heard these songs all week long and I never get tired of it. I don’t think I ever will.
After the concert, Tom and Polly bought everyone ice cream and the kids had free time to wind down. Curfew is 11:00 tonight. We have an early morning and a long drive, so I ’m hoping everyone goes right to bed. I'd like to leave you with a scripture verse from Psalm 113:3: “From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.” We have been doing that every single day this week. I think that God is smiling down on us. I hope you are too.
Watched the video Friday night. I was absolutely amazed at the sound of the CWS! I also watched Cole V. as he sang. His body seemed to be in sync with every word that came from his mouth. What struck me most were the "Newbies". The mature singers and young adults were all the "Newbies" when I came to DUMC. It's so great to see the CWS continue strong and bring the message in song!
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