One Glorious Chorus

 

DCINY Production/Dan Wright Photography/June 9, 2024

One Glorious Chorus 

for my fellow SAHC singers & friends 

We step out of a yellow cab into a swirl 

of sounds, of lights, of colors, step into 

a hotel elevator going up, up 39 floors, 

our window view silver skyscrapers 

in a sea of blue, a cacophony of traffic and noise   

stretching on, interrupted by a breath of green 

blooming across its center, a horse-drawn carriage, 

summer jazz and food truck smells mingling in city air. 

We step into a rehearsal room, relax and feel the comfort

of a space of song, the way our voices weave as we sing, 

the way this city welcomes and overwhelms us, the way 

our many voices gel into one glorious sound, one glorious chorus

in this city of wonder, this city of sounds and peoples and languages 

and love, this city where dreams are made and lights seldom dim, 

this city where paces quicken, beatboxes bump, rainbows burst. 

We stand within that storied hall together, feel a hush descend 

as the conductor lifts his baton, feel an awe electric  

as we open our scores, inhale a collective breath, lift our eyes 

to its house of glitter and gold, feel the moment when the first notes 

ascend, when our heartbeats join in unison, when chords connect 

and our harmonies begin to sing, to rise, to soar beyond the audience 

out into the wide blue of this city where we are bound together 

in our shared love of what fills and sustains us, of what heals 

and keeps us, of what thrills and comforts us, of one glorious chorus  

that lifts us from sorrow to joyfulness, that makes us feel alive. 

Copyright @Stacie Eirich July 19, 2024

Last summer was our summer of tears, of pain and grief, of many nights spent inpatient with the constant drip of chemotherapy medicines into my child’s body, then the countless blood transfusions and rounds of antibiotics for infections that followed. It was so hard that I wrote less, slept fitfully, and felt the acute sting of isolation from life outside the hospital. 

This summer is our summer of wonder, of healing and joy, of days spent in new places, making new friends and experiencing things we couldn’t have dreamed would be possible. It’s as if all the life we were missing is now rushing in, and it’s nothing less than dazzling, a whirlwind spinning us into each new and exciting tomorrow. 

DCINY Production/Dan Wright Photography/June 9, 2024

Last summer, I couldn’t have foretold that I would fly to New York City and have the opportunity to sing on the storied stage of Carnegie Hall alongside a group of international choral singers & friends. I also couldn’t have known that I’d be given the greatest gift in having Sadie, cancer-free, by my side to experience all the music, lights, artistry and humanity of the Big Apple. But incredibly, we did. 

As a lifelong singer — for me, this was a dream come true. One that, as a forty-something Mom who has only sometimes sung paid ‘gigs’ (weddings, funerals, holiday events & summer stock) I never expected to realize. The truth is, I had written off Carnegie Hall as something unreachable for this small-town girl who chose mothering and writing over a singing career.

DCINY Production/Dan Wright Photography/June 9, 2024

But in this case, the phrase we can do great things rings true — if only we allow others to help us, to stand beside us and show us that perhaps that thing we dreamed of can happen. 

And another great thing that came, only a day after returning home from New York City? Well, that’s a story from last week’s blogpost — which you can find here. A hint, but not a spoiler: this great thing was for the whole family, involved a whole lotta nature, and was a complete surprise. 

Last summer, I couldn’t have dreamed that traveling to New York City and singing in the greatest music hall in our nation would be possible. Or that my child would be not only cancer-free but thriving! Or that our family would be experiencing life in new places beside friends from all over the world. 

Last summer, I wouldn’t have wanted to ask the question: What’s next? Fear had its grips in me.

DCINY Production/Dan Wright Photography/June 9, 2024 

This summer, I’m asking this question and more, and I’m letting fear in less. I’m jumping in with my whole heart, with my family beside me and our worldwide friends in the wings, offering encouragement. 

With such an amazing community of love surrounding us, and so many new things in this world to discover, how could we feel anything but blessed? 

This is our summer of wonder, a summer that keeps on giving, a summer that shines bright with possibility, with hope — and most of all, with love. 

Thank you for reading, and for stopping by my blog today. Here’s a photo montage from our New York City extravaganza to cue the finale & empty the house: 

In wonder, 

Stacie

*Post Script* My child is a patient at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.  If you’d like to follow our journey to a cure, visit: https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/hopeforsadie