"What was that?" I said absentmindedly, sitting the paper on a nearby table.
"Oh, I'm supposed to choose some electives for high school."
I swear in that moment, I felt a sensation much like in the movies, when the background zeroes in on one person, and my eyes bulge out. ELECTIVES! The fun part of High School! Dropping my purse, I grab the paper and read through, and was surprised to see he's already picked a few he's excited about... and one very surprising one.
"You chose band?" I said with hesitation.
"Yea," he casually replied from his bedroom.
"You... CHOSE BAND!" I repeated with confidence. "This isn't a slip of a hand? A random pencil mark? You really are going to stick with BAND for high school?"
"Mom..." was the final reply I heard before his voice fades, and the reality of my week days and weekends for the next four years come in focus. I'm a band mom. With ONE checkmark, I'm a real band mom.
This is not a new area for me. Having spent seven years in the band program in school, I was aware of the excitement, the frustrations, the joy and pain of Band. I marched colorguard in Middle and High Schools, and was Drum Major in both bands as well. Yep. I am all too familiar with the commitment that little penciled check mark meant. And I begin to panic. And want to call Mom.
He's decided. And we're committing! Here we go... onto some really amazing years of our lives! We're headed into BAND LIFE!
"Hey, Son?" I ask.
"Yea?"
"When is the first rookie camp?"
"I dunno."
"What about handouts? Practices? After school commitments?"
"I dunno."
"Do you who is in charge to contact about this, besides the band directors?"
"I dunno."
Yep. It's gonna be an EXCITING band career! Wish us luck!!
