Nursing home Christmas Edition

Today I took the orchestra over to the nursing home. I wasn’t able to get any pictures of the group playing since I was playing and conducting with them, but here at least is a picture of the chairs awaiting an audience:

Notice the festive snowflakes on the windows.

Notice the festive snowflakes on the windows.

A violinist’s mom and grandmother came to watch, so hopefully I will be able to get a few of their pictures.

We played “This Is the Feast,” “Evening Prayer from Hansel & Gretel,” Corelli’s ‘Pastorale’ movement of his “Christmas Concerto,” and several Christmas carols.

Gustav will continue to announce the rehearsals for the next 2 weeks until our Christmas concert on December 13!

Here is Gustav in all his colorful array. Aren't you jealous of his festive garb?

Here is Gustav in all his colorful array. Aren't you jealous of his festive garb?

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Recent Ereignisse

Sunday:

Kari Eaves had a bridal shower. Yay for amazing cake. Yay for Kari and Mike.

Soccer was lots of fun, though I think I bruised my right shin.

Monday:

One of the kids in Study Hall had a birthday, so I brought in some pastries from Lacoste, the bakery in town. They all enjoyed the tasty breakfast!

Later at HBR, the birthday celebration continued. The birthday kids always get to pick what type of cake they want, so this particular student chose cheesecake. Before getting to eat the cake, however, there was the traditional birthday drone from the boys. It sounds like a creepy cultic chant, especially with the lights turned off and one candle lit for the birthday boy to blow out! Then the boys picked up the birthday boy and bounced him up and down on their shoulders. I’m not sure what they were saying/chanting when they did this, but they were excited about it. For underclassmen, a creeking would have followed, but seniors are exempt from this tradition.

The Birthday Boy eats his cheese cake. Don't worry, he didn't eat alone - the other boys are just up getting their own slices!

The Birthday Boy eats his cheese cake. Don't worry, he didn't eat alone - the other boys are just up getting their own slices!

After dinner, I helped some kids study.

This student was taking a make-up history test from when he was sick. The large soccer ball in the foreground resides on the junior hall and is used as a chair, etc.

This student was taking a make-up history test from when he was sick. The large soccer ball in the foreground resides on the junior hall and is used as a chair.

Tuesday:

This morning I had a rehearsal for Christmas music. Tomorrow we will be going to the nursing home, and the kids that were there feel pretty ready to play now. The rehearsals have been hit-or-miss with attendance. In the future (if I ever have a concert where I’m pulling kids from other classes) I will schedule fewer rehearsals and make them all mandatory, instead of scheduling lots of rehearsals and saying “come to the ones you can.” When I make a very emphatic announcement over the intercom for 3 days leading up to a rehearsal, students tend to come, but I would like to teach the kids to be responsible for themselves and actually look at the schedule I gave them.

I tried using Gustav as a reminder tool for rehearsals, but he does not seem to do much good.

Gustav gains a red hat and an ornament for his goblet.

Gustav gains a red hat and an ornament for his goblet.

Gustav’s looks are not improved by his external adornment. This picture was taken a couple weeks ago, so it does not show the full extent of his trappings. You’ll just have to wait for a later post to see what else I’ve done to the poor paper mache man!

Study Hall: The other two HBR boys said today that though the senior did not get creeked on his birthday, he should get creeked at some point while he is here. It would be a pity to live in HBR and not get creeked. It’s like a rite of passage.

What do you do with a pair of scissors and a couple bored boys in study hall?

  • A.) Cut paper snowflakes
  • B.) Pretend to stab the teacher
  • C.) Go crow hunting – unsuccessfully
  • D.) All of the above

The answer today was D, all of the above. I started my annual snowflake making frenzy . . .

I started my annual snowflake making frenzy

These are just a few of the snowflakes I made in study hall.

Two of the boys have attempted to make snowflakes, with some interesting but not bad results. I think one of them would prefer to shoot ice tea carton caps across the room like he did yesterday (it’s really fun once you get the hang of it!). That’s why he got bored with the snowflakes and pretended to stab me with the scissors.  Maybe he was thinking of the time I hit him over the head with a plate when he wouldn’t get up from watching cartoons to go clean the bathroom. The scissors led to a discussion about what would happen if someone attacked a teacher in the middle of class. One of the boys said he would probably do nothing, or go somewhere else so he wouldn’t be blamed if something happened. In the middle of that discussion, they saw a couple large crows outside the window. They asked if they could chase the enormous birds, and I said they could. As they walked outside, I said, “Don’t get my scissors dirty!” Fortunately, the crows knew how to use their wings, and there was no bird blood spilled.

On a more serious note, the study hall kids have been taking the Bible Study devotions seriously. I started out by asking them to write down any questions they had related to things they had heard in classes or during church, etc. After this, we spent a couple days discussing how to study the Bible. Now I am having each student take one morning and share what he/she has learned from studying either a passage or a topic/question. Three students have discussed their thoughts so far, and all three have been diving deep into the Scriptures to seek out answers to questions that have been bothering them.

Just as all of these questions are coming out in Study Hall, Brian Post (BFA’s Middle School history teacher now, was a pastor for 21 years) gave a chapel message on doubting last Friday! He encouraged the students not to suppress doubts and pretend they don’t exist. Instead:

  • Do ask questions – it airs out the infection, gives you the freedom to believe, and many times you get answers when you ask! There are answers out there, though we have not discovered them all
  • The Bible tells us that if we love God we will obey His commands. Faith comes not by knowing all the answers, but by loving God and obeying His commands. If we seek to know God as a Being, the questions and doubts do not overwhelm us because we have the assurance from our relationship with God.
  • Don’t give up your faith just because you have questions. It is one of the most valuable things you have. You may not recognize the full extent of its value now, but in 100 years you will, and by then it will be too late if you threw away your faith.

I asked the study hall students what they had thought of last Friday’s chapel message, and all of them said that though they zone out in many chapel messages, this one was actually related to something they thought about. It was a good message, and hit home for many students. Praise God!

At lunch today, the orchestra girls and I played Christmas carols in the student center. There were a lot of middle school students sitting there eating lunch and watching us play. I also saw several cameras appear, so I hope to see some pictures sometime soon!

We will be having school on Thanksgiving since it is not a German holiday. There is nothing to hold back Christmas cheer!  Decorations went up around town today, but I had already started with Gustav, the snowflakes, and Christmas music in orchestra.

These days are packed full of events (Ereignisse). God alone knows what tomorrow holds; I rest in Him!

Posted in Dorm Life, Orchestra, Study Hall | 2 Comments

An Exhausting Day

1. I ran 9 miles this morning.

2. Stadmusik Kandern (community band) had a 5 hour rehearsal. I was playing tuba from 1-6pm!

3. BFA’s Music Recital was at 7:30. After a quick bite of dinner, I went over to the school. I played a duet with one student and cheered another student on as he played the most dramatic performance of “Gavotte from Mignon” I have ever seen. He played it with lots of energy and hilarious facial expressions that really conveyed the cheerfulness of the piece.

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Thanksgiving #1

Happy Thanksgiving!

Ok, I’m one week early, but yesterday the dorms all celebrated Thanksgiving. I went over to HBR and had a wonderful feast!

Anna slaves away at the potatoes

Anna slaves away at the potatoes

We all enjoyed the excellent food. I particularly liked the stuffing, and by the end I was stuffed!

Enjoying the feast

Enjoying the feast

I did save some room for a bit of pie, though…

It was impossible to just pick one type of pie. I had 2 slices – one cherry and one chocolate cream

It was impossible to just pick one type of pie. I had 2 slices – one cherry and one chocolate cream

There were 4 kids in isolation with Swine Flu, and the four of them ate a sad Thanksgiving meal together in the sick room.

There was a lot of leftover food, but it will not go to waste. The boys stored some of the food to eat it later in the week.

There were lots of dishes to be done!

There were lots of dishes to be done!

Cleanup took quite a bit of work on everyone’s part. Kari Eaves helped a student scrub the pots and pans. Not only does this student have more pans than usual, but his scrubbing partner is out sick with Swine Flu!

Kari sits at the table; Greenie behind her

Kari sits at the table; Greenie behind her

Kari happened to have a birthday today. HBR boys have a special tradition when it comes to birthdays. Kari Eaves is not a boy, but her fiancee Mike Greenhoe (“Greenie”) was an RA there for 4 years, so she is an honorary member of HBR. The boys sang their typical dirge-like version of Happy Birthday, which involves some shouting and table-pounding. Fortunately for her, this birthday dirge did not end up in a Creeking!

After cleaning up and helping a few boys with chemistry homework, Greenie drove me, Kari, and a couple other HBR subs home to Kandern.

More pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2042631&id=187701865&l=17da0a4420

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Quality Time at HBR

This weekend I had the chance to catch up on rest and relaxation, but yesterday and today I helped out at HBR to give the dorm staff a bit of a break.

Yesterday (Monday) I ran over to the dorm and made French Toast for brunch. I used lots of butter to keep the toast from sticking to the giant grill (I made 12 at a time), and the boys loved it! The butter probably wasn’t the healthiest thing, but at least it tasted really good.

After breakfast, I played Speed Scrabble with a few people. It was a little slow-moving (especially since I started with a Q on the first game and didn’t get a U the whole time), but a good, fun, relaxing thing to do.

Then I sat and watched the first Indiana Jones movie. Since it was a day off, there was an Indiana Jones movie marathon going on – I only watched the first, and I don’t think any boys sat through all three.

I was supposed to be done around 2:00pm, but the boys were going to play soccer then, so I decided to join them. A few of us ran back to the dorm from the field in Tannenkirch, so I was extra sweaty by that point! Greg (dorm dad) had made smoothies while we were out, so we ate those when we got back.

The Dome Project: A few of the boys had been building “The Dome” in the forest, so I went and looked at that. The Dome is kind of like a fort, but cooler. They have constructed it from only wood and twine. It will be a few more weeks before it is done; right now they have the frame done and a few walls put up. I was planning on getting pictures of it today, but I didn’t get a chance to go out into the forest because I had to be back at school for a meeting at 3:00. It’s really impressive and large – I really hope I get a chance to take a picture of it soon!

After the Dome yesterday, I ate dinner and rode home with the other subs.

Today started off like a Saturday morning. We watched cartoons and ate pancakes, sausage, and fruit in the TV room. This meant that I hiked up and down 4 flights of stairs about 10 times carrying trays of food, dishes, vitamin tablets, batter, and a griddle.

Watching cartoons

Watching cartoons

Each morning, all the students are required to take their temperature and record it. If they have a fever, they go into isolation immediately.

This student has just taken his temperature. He's clear!

Anna writes down the student's temperature. He's clear!

Not everyone was all clear, though. One student had a fever and a cough. Greg drove him in to the nurse at BFA, and judging by his symptoms, he has Swine Flu! Just when we thought HBR was getting healthy, the first case of Swine Flu appears in the dorm!

After breakfast (which lasted until about 11:30am), it was time for chores. They call them “Gratis,” which means free, because it’s work they do for free – they don’t get paid.

Look at those sparkling clean floors!

Look at those sparkling clean floors!

Danielle and I each checked half the boys’ gratis to make sure they were done. For the most part, the boys are good about doing their jobs, but I had to actually wake up one boy TWICE to get him to finish his gratis!

After that it was lunch time. Danielle and I made grilled cheese, and Anna made chicken soup.

It takes a lot of grilled cheese to feed a boys' dorm. This is only half of it!

It takes a lot of grilled cheese to feed a boys' dorm. This is only half of it, ready to be grilled!

It was just another day in the crazy life of a dorm!

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Shut Down! Except…

On Friday it was announced that BFA would go into Swine-Flu Mode for the next week. This means that Monday and Tuesday we will not have school, and all students are to stay in their homes/dorms as much as possible. The German government wanted the school to close for a full 7 days, but our situation is unique because of the boarding program. By closing school and sending kids home, we are not isolating them – we are sending them to dorms full of students! This is why we are compromising and closing for 2 days and doing our best to keep the disease contained within the school and not letting it spread to the German community.

The exception to the shut down was the school play, “Said the Spider to the Spy.” There were family members flying in to see the performance, so we couldn’t postpone it, but we didn’t want to infect them. The solution:

The masked crowd awaits the start of the play

The masked crowd awaits the start of the play

The masks were slightly uncomfortable to wear, but everyone enjoyed it as a unique experience.

Katie, Rachel, and I were excited.

Katie, Rachel, and I were excited.

Some kids also decided to have a little fun with the masks.

This kid's mask had some personality!

This kid's mask had some personality!

The play was an entertaining crime caper. The students did a great job!

Since the dorm staff normally has their afternoons off while the students are at school, Monday and Tuesday are creating extra work for them. Teachers have been asked to help fill in and give the dorm staff a chance to take a break. I will be going over to HBR on Monday and Tuesday mornings to help out. Fortunately, HBR does not have any known cases of Swine Flu. The worst cases are at Maugenhard and Palmgarten, where Rachel is helping. Hopefully she will not bring any Swine Flu germs home!

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Feuerwehr Concert

Last night I played a concert with Stadtmusik Kandern at the fire station. The occasion: An new fire truck!

The unveiling of the truck: The firemen lifted the tarp off the truck using some cables and pulleys

The unveiling of the truck: The firemen lifted the tarp off the truck using some cables and pulleys

They used some kind of smoke generator to make the appearing of the truck more exciting, but everyone in the audience and the band started coughing as the smoke spread out.

Waiting to play

Trumpets and drum set waiting to play

We played several pieces in between speeches, hand shakes, photographs, and slide show presentations.

My tuba and my spit puddle

My tuba and my spit puddle

I sure hope I don’t have Swine Flu – I left a big puddle of “condensation” on the floor. I’m still feeling healthy right now!

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Schweinegrippe = Swine Flu

It has arrived. There is only one confirmed case so far –  a home student. This is good, because dorm students would quickly pass it on to everyone else in the dorm. The student’s whole family have been quarantined.

However, there could be more cases that have yet to be confirmed or recognized as H1N1. All of us are holding our breath to see what the next few days will hold as more students are tested for the detested disease. Stay tuned for more information!

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Annoyance

Sickness can really be an annoyance. The boys and dorm staff at HBR are having to deal with lots of unpleasant things right now. Dorm mom Danielle was sick over the weekend, along with 7 or 8 boys. Several missed class on Monday, and they couldn’t even rest up because of the workers drilling the walls to fix the radiator problem. When I was there yesterday, one of the pipes that was supposed to be fixed started dripping a steady stream of water. How annoying! The boys joke about the “HBR curse,” stemming from some vandalism that the dorm had received last week. Someone had painted a V with a circle around it on the outside of the dorm on Guy Fawkes Day (Nov. 5).

As dorm subs, Greenie and I had heard about these strange happenings at HBR. Though we weren’t afraid of a “curse,” we thought we should at least have the appearance of keeping ourselves healthy from the illness that has befallen the dorm. We showed up wearing masks that the nurses were only too happy to give us!

Ready or not, here I come!

Ready or not, here I come!

A couple more boys got sick while we were there. Hopefully I won’t catch their bug! Two of my study hall students were out sick today, one of them from HBR.

We have been talking about sharing the Gospel in study hall. Today as I was walking home from school, I saw one of my study hall students approaching. He was talking to another BFA student who is not a Christian. As we passed each other, my student said to me, “Hey – Gospel sharing – I’m doing it right now. And it’s annoying!”

I’ll have to find out what was annoying to him at that particular moment. At least I know the students have been thinking about our study hall devotional times! Now we are starting to talk about practical ways to study the Bible. Perhaps this will cause more annoying conversations for my students!

Posted in Dorm Life, Study Hall | 1 Comment

Tough Stuff

Yesterday when playing soccer I accidentally knocked over several large men. Honestly, I wasn’t trying to hurt them! I was in the process of stealing the ball from them, our feet collided, and the men went rolling across the floor. It happened at least 3 times! And one of them was a really big, solid guy that never falls over! I guess my low center of gravity helps my stability, although I was surprised that my legs weren’t more tired from running 10 miles on Saturday.

On a side note, there are about 6 or 7 sick boys at HBR (fever, headache, diarrhea), so I’m hoping that my immune system is as strong as my legs and I won’t catch this sickness from them when I sub tonight. Your prayers for health for all the students and staff would be appreciated.

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