Today was special. I taught the Camelotians and Damsels(my two favorite groups) for the last time today. :( I don't know why I love the Camelotians so much. It's probably because they're so young and innocent. They're between ages 8-9. Kids that age seem so unphased by society. It's awesome. So, when I told them today that their characters are supposed to be grumpy, they ran with it. It was sooo cute.They were perfectly grouchy and I loved it. Then, when I worked with the Damsels today, I couldn't help but smile. There are only three of them(there are usually 6), but I believe these girls have put more heart into their roles than most of the Damsels I've seen. They're young, too(Camelotian age), but that doesn't seem to affect their performance. I love their passion. Its refreshing to work with ladies who care!
And now, to share a funny story with you:
When Jacqueline and I arrived at the AFB Ballroom this morning for rehearsal, we noticed that we were missing a few cast members. When we spoke to our contact, she informed us that one of our Knights(who is also 9) got his arm stuck in the pool table. I kid you not. When we investigated, we saw the evidence. There he was, our poor, pathetic Red Knight wimpering under the pressure of the pool table(and his newly-drawn crowd). I'm not entirely sure how he managed to get himself stuck there, but it was a sad sight. His siblings were hanging around him crying anxiously. When I asked what the status was, his older brother(who has a lisp) replied,"Well, they're slowly trying to ease his arm out with some grease...and they've called the fire department". He was a little too distraught over this. An older mom was sitting nearby and responded to his comment(she was British):"Really,darling, you musn't be sad about it. It's actually quite funny. No need to cry"
Then, when he was finally free of the table, he wanted to know why we started rehearsal so late...
Oh,boy... :)
Learning how to love until all have heard,
Sus
(4 days!!!eeeeek!)
Showing posts with label Theatre. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Theatre. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Monday, August 9, 2010
Sinking
I'm not really sure that I want this madness to end! I taught some of my favorite scenes to my favorite characters in the show for the last time today. Thinking about it now saddens me. Last week, however, I just wanted to speed the process up. It was a hard 7 days, to say the least. I won't go into detail, but I was thankful to pull out of town on Sunday morning.I will say this: J and I had to create a "NO eating during rehearsals/performances" rule. Teehee. These are some crazy kids!If you want to hear the stories, just ask(susanna.agnew@gmail.com)
Jacqueline and I had mani/pedi bonding time on the way out of town to celebrate the coming of my last week.It's bittersweet. That's really the only way I see it. It's the end. And I'm not really ready to say goodbye. During my final audition session today, I almost teared up(yes, I am THAT much of a girl). I will miss working with these precious children. And yes, they are ALL precious. If I have learned anything about little ones this summer(and essentially people), it is this: each one has something wonderfully unique to offer because they are all created in the image of Christ. Some of them are unexplainably angry. Some of them are selflessly kind. Others,still, are mysteriously in between-not unhappy, but not joyful either. Whatever the personality, they're all special. You just have to look, love and learn!
It has been so easy for me to lose my temper lately...probably because home comes soon(5 days!!!) and I'm anxious. I'm not entirely ready to revisit the real world, but it seems I can't escape it. Just...a...few...more...days...I'm striving, but I don't want to miss the joy in this last week because I'm hoping for home. I'm reminded of a favorite literary character, Sir Reepicheep, from the Chornicles of Narnia series, who said:
"While I can, I sail East in the Dawn Treader. When she fails me, I paddle east in my coracle.When she sinks, I shall swim east with my four paws. And when I can swim no longer, if I have not yet reached Aslan's country, or shot over the edge of the world in some vast cataract,I shall sink with my nose to the sunrise"
Hm. Reepicheep was determined. He knew how he was going to sail and why he was sailing. He even reaized that when he could swim no longer, he would face death...and he chose to face it with an eternal perspective,"nose to the sunrise".
What would it look like to be that consistent? To have an undivided heart(Ezekiel 11
:19) like Reepicheep? How would I live if every moment concerned eternity? How would I love if every person I encountered was seen through this lens?
Francis Chan describes this kind of person in his book,Crazy Love:
"A person who is obsessed thinks about heaven frequently. Obsessed people orient their lives around eternity; they are not fixed only on what is here in front of them...people who are obsessed with Jesus do not consider service a burden. Obsessed people take joy in loving God by loving his people...obsessed people genuinely think that others matter as much as they do, and they are particularly aware of those who are poor around the world"
Heh, I'm not that person.Not even close to being that person. Even though I desire to be that person, I can't do it. Not on my own. And if my desire is authentic, then it's not from Susanna, it is from Christ. CHRIST is supplying the need; the longing to live with this Heavenly perspective. I can share Christ with people, but HE is the one stirring their hearts. I can serve these children faithfully, but if I am not surrendered pathetically to the love of Christ, then my service is futile.Here's a BIG life lesson I've learned recently: I can make plans, but CHRIST is directing my steps. He knows better. HE is sovereignly good---> this means that if something doesn't go the way I wanted, it is good. So, how can I live with this Heavenly perspective? Through the grace of Christ. He will equip me to "sink" with a Heavenly, joyful perspective. Only by His grace. I'm so thankful this doesn't depend on me because I fail everyday. Daddy, make me like Reepicheep.
Learning how to love until all have heard,
Sus
(5 days!!eek!)
Jacqueline and I had mani/pedi bonding time on the way out of town to celebrate the coming of my last week.It's bittersweet. That's really the only way I see it. It's the end. And I'm not really ready to say goodbye. During my final audition session today, I almost teared up(yes, I am THAT much of a girl). I will miss working with these precious children. And yes, they are ALL precious. If I have learned anything about little ones this summer(and essentially people), it is this: each one has something wonderfully unique to offer because they are all created in the image of Christ. Some of them are unexplainably angry. Some of them are selflessly kind. Others,still, are mysteriously in between-not unhappy, but not joyful either. Whatever the personality, they're all special. You just have to look, love and learn!
It has been so easy for me to lose my temper lately...probably because home comes soon(5 days!!!) and I'm anxious. I'm not entirely ready to revisit the real world, but it seems I can't escape it. Just...a...few...more...days...I'm striving, but I don't want to miss the joy in this last week because I'm hoping for home. I'm reminded of a favorite literary character, Sir Reepicheep, from the Chornicles of Narnia series, who said:
"While I can, I sail East in the Dawn Treader. When she fails me, I paddle east in my coracle.When she sinks, I shall swim east with my four paws. And when I can swim no longer, if I have not yet reached Aslan's country, or shot over the edge of the world in some vast cataract,I shall sink with my nose to the sunrise"
Hm. Reepicheep was determined. He knew how he was going to sail and why he was sailing. He even reaized that when he could swim no longer, he would face death...and he chose to face it with an eternal perspective,"nose to the sunrise".
What would it look like to be that consistent? To have an undivided heart(Ezekiel 11
:19) like Reepicheep? How would I live if every moment concerned eternity? How would I love if every person I encountered was seen through this lens?
Francis Chan describes this kind of person in his book,Crazy Love:
"A person who is obsessed thinks about heaven frequently. Obsessed people orient their lives around eternity; they are not fixed only on what is here in front of them...people who are obsessed with Jesus do not consider service a burden. Obsessed people take joy in loving God by loving his people...obsessed people genuinely think that others matter as much as they do, and they are particularly aware of those who are poor around the world"
Heh, I'm not that person.Not even close to being that person. Even though I desire to be that person, I can't do it. Not on my own. And if my desire is authentic, then it's not from Susanna, it is from Christ. CHRIST is supplying the need; the longing to live with this Heavenly perspective. I can share Christ with people, but HE is the one stirring their hearts. I can serve these children faithfully, but if I am not surrendered pathetically to the love of Christ, then my service is futile.Here's a BIG life lesson I've learned recently: I can make plans, but CHRIST is directing my steps. He knows better. HE is sovereignly good---> this means that if something doesn't go the way I wanted, it is good. So, how can I live with this Heavenly perspective? Through the grace of Christ. He will equip me to "sink" with a Heavenly, joyful perspective. Only by His grace. I'm so thankful this doesn't depend on me because I fail everyday. Daddy, make me like Reepicheep.
Learning how to love until all have heard,
Sus
(5 days!!eek!)
Monday, July 26, 2010
Glitter
Loving people has been difficult lately. Don't ask me why. Maybe its because I'm so distracted by work...or maybe its because I'm selfish(I'd go with the latter excuse). I am such a sinner. Everyday my loathing of this sin darkens. Sin really is detestable. We taught 19 workshops in Reno last week. That's roughly 4 a day. OR, in our case, 3 Monday-Wednesday, 5 Thursday and 5 on Friday. On top of that, we directed 4 hours of rehearsals with a mere fifteen minute break in between. By the time we made it back to our hotel in the evening, it was bedtime and I was pooped! Fun fact: when Susanna is lacking in sleep, she's either grumpy or loopy. The combination of those two emotions is NOT appropriate for working with kids. At morning workshops, my sleeplessness threatened to overtake me. So, before each morning,I knelt in prayer before the Lord, asking for strength. It wasn't easy to love the unruly children at some of those workshops, but by God's grace I could. Instead of feeling frustrated with kids for jumping on me and failing to pay attention at times, I felt compassionate towards them. Naturally, my sin would sneak up on me, telling me to snap. But the Lord is immensely gracious, and "where sin increased, grace increased all the more". Miraculously, when a little one asked, "Why do I need to listen to this?" I was able to answer politely, and with a smile. And when yet another began to whine because her costume wasn't the way she preferred, I was able to smile, fix her problem and move forward with the day.Also, when the frequent nose-bleed occurred(we are out West, after all), I didn't become unglued. I calmly and patiently escorted him/her to the bathroom and was even able to alleviate any little-one fears with a kind word. It hasn't been easy to live in a world of complaints, nose-bleeds and rebellious attitudes, but by God's grace I manage. No, I don't manage, I shine.Actually, Christ shines.Susanna has nothing to do with it. Last Friday, Jacqueline and I had 5 workshops, 4 hours of rehearsal, and 1 hour of constructing the set afterward. It was a strenuous day. Later on,the Lord encouraged my heart with this verse:
"The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of the dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day"
--Proverbs 4:18
Earlier last week, on a day when I was feeling particularly discouraged over a number of silly things, one little boy decided to make me smile. I was sitting there pitifully attempting some paperwork, when a young Camelotian took my hand. I had been grouchy all day long and I was acting ridiculous.
"Where are we going?"
No answer.
He took me up to the piano, where our lovely accompanist was reviewing sheet music.
When we arrived at the piano(the walk to the stage was quite lengthy), he placed one hand on my shoulder and the other on the accompanist's.With a smile that was more than endearing, he said, "You(accompanist) are just the best piano player ever. And YOU(Susanna) are just...you are just the most talented singer and actor I have ever met". When he finished his spiel, he ran away to join the other children. Was he seriously talking to me, Miss Grumpy McGrumperson? Humbled, party of one. What a gracious God we serve. I know these stories may seem redundant, but its because these grace experiences far outweigh the negativities(which aren't truly as bad as they seem) my sin tries to magnify. How beautiful it is to feel the light of Christ amidst the "Oscar the Grouch" moments. It is refreshingly real and abundantly humbling. Christ shines through the grouch within. Christ is the light source, making his beloved shine "ever brighter until the full light of day" when He returns. What is my response? Thanks and a desire(through God's grace) to love the Oscars of this world. Writing as one myself, you never know what they're feeling.And you have to realize(even though they're not the shiniest toy in the box) that they have glitter,too.
Learning how to love until all have heard,
Susanna
"The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of the dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day"
--Proverbs 4:18
Earlier last week, on a day when I was feeling particularly discouraged over a number of silly things, one little boy decided to make me smile. I was sitting there pitifully attempting some paperwork, when a young Camelotian took my hand. I had been grouchy all day long and I was acting ridiculous.
"Where are we going?"
No answer.
He took me up to the piano, where our lovely accompanist was reviewing sheet music.
When we arrived at the piano(the walk to the stage was quite lengthy), he placed one hand on my shoulder and the other on the accompanist's.With a smile that was more than endearing, he said, "You(accompanist) are just the best piano player ever. And YOU(Susanna) are just...you are just the most talented singer and actor I have ever met". When he finished his spiel, he ran away to join the other children. Was he seriously talking to me, Miss Grumpy McGrumperson? Humbled, party of one. What a gracious God we serve. I know these stories may seem redundant, but its because these grace experiences far outweigh the negativities(which aren't truly as bad as they seem) my sin tries to magnify. How beautiful it is to feel the light of Christ amidst the "Oscar the Grouch" moments. It is refreshingly real and abundantly humbling. Christ shines through the grouch within. Christ is the light source, making his beloved shine "ever brighter until the full light of day" when He returns. What is my response? Thanks and a desire(through God's grace) to love the Oscars of this world. Writing as one myself, you never know what they're feeling.And you have to realize(even though they're not the shiniest toy in the box) that they have glitter,too.
Learning how to love until all have heard,
Susanna
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