Sunday, May 3, 2015
Over the past few months, Richard has told me that the Bishop wants me to lead the music in Relief Society. I have told Richard to tell the Bishop that I had never learned to read music. He kept insisting that the Bishop is adamant that I take the calling because he feels strongly that it’s the Lord’s will for me to do so.
Every Sunday when we get home from church, Richard tells me that the Bishop strongly feels I need to accept the calling.
So many other women know how to conduct, so I don’t understand why the Bishop insists that I do it!
When we got home from church today, Richard started in on me again. He said, “It’s been 6 months now, and the Bishop can’t understand why you won’t accept the calling!” I said, “Look, I have no idea how to do it, even if I wanted to!” He said, “You need to trust that the Bishop is inspired! It’s really not that hard!” Richard knew how to conduct, so I said, “If you teach me how first, then I will accept the calling.” He said, “Sure, it’s no problem!”
Sunday, May 17, 2015
In Sacrament today, I was called to conduct the music in R.S. I told Richard I wasn’t going to do it until he showed me how. He said that I needed more faith and that I could do it. So I got set apart to start leading the music in R.S.
When we got home from church, I asked Richard to show me how to conduct so that I could practice and be ready for next Sunday. He told me, “You just wave your arms.” I said no, there is more to it than that! He responded not really. Besides, no one even looks at the conductor. As long as you stand in front of everyone and sing the song as you wave your arm, you will be fine!
It didn’t seem right to me, but if that was really all that was to it, then I guess the calling isn’t going to be too hard.
Since I have no musical ability whatsoever, I never look at the conductor, so yeah, I totally believed him.
Sunday, May 24, 2015
I wrote on the board the songs I had picked out to sing in R.S. As I waved my arms while we sang, it was as if some of the ladies forgot how to sing. Some of them just stared at me with their mouth open in disbelief. I thought, as long as I act the part, everything will be fine.
When R.S. was over, a few of the ladies came over and said something to this effect: “What the crap was that all about?!”
One of the ladies, named *BeNae, who has a degree in music, asked me what in the world I was doing. So I told her that Richard had told me just to wave my arm. She could not believe that I believed that’s all there was to it. I was so humiliated! I didn’t want to come back to R.S. ever again!
One of the ladies said, “Oh, Anne-Mette, everyone loves you! They don’t care! They are going to go on with their lives and forget all about this!” I could only hope that was true.
BeNae came home with me after church because she was thoroughly offended that Richard had told me there was nothing to it. It was an art! Not something that was to be made fun of!
When BeNae saw Richard, she gave him a piece of her mind. Here she had majored in music, and it had taken her years to get where she was. How dare he make fun of conducting! Before she left, she said to me, “If you are serious about conducting, then come to my place in a bout an hour, and we will go over next week’s songs. Then she left.
Richard looks up to BeNae. After she had left, he got angry with me and asked why I had told her what he had said. I told him because it was the truth! Besides, you made me look like a complete idiot standing there waving my arms! Richard tried to tell me it was because I had not done it with enough confidence. I told him no amount of confidence would help me lead the music unless I knew what I was doing!
After that, every Sunday I would go to BeNae’s house, and she would show me how to do next week’s song. I would record what she told me. Then all week long, I would practice every morning so I would be ready for Sunday.
Sunday, May 31, 2015
I was prepared and ready to conduct the music! As I stood in front of everyone, a few ladies in the front row started waving their arms to try to help me. It was so frustrating and distracting! I had to put the songbook over my eyes so that I couldn’t see them, and then kept going.
Over the next few weeks, the helpful ladies in the front row finally realized I knew what I was doing and stopped trying to show me how to conduct.
Over the next few months, since I got better and better at it, I was even asked to substitute for the person who led music in the Sacrament meeting.
Just as I had the calling down and was getting good at it, Richard told me that the Bishop wanted to release me. I asked him why, when some ladies get to have this calling for years. Besides, I was just beginning to enjoy it! He said it was because the Bishop felt it was time for someone else to have the opportunity.
Leave a Reply