"Joe, I"d like you to play from measure twelve," Ms. Cortez says about an hour into Wednesday"s practice. After he plays flawlessly, she asks Mel to do the same thing.
My eyes are popping out of their sockets. Is she picking people randomly to play by themselves? My heart is in my ears as I try to disappear into my chair. I absolutely cannot do this. I"m still sloppy on the challenging parts.
The director calls on two more people, and I breath a huge sigh of relief when she announces sectionals. After sectionals, I approach Mel as the rest of the flutes disperse for break.
The pit in my stomach is back, feeling like the tar on the hot parking lot where we had sectional as I give Mel the bad news. It took a bit to explain why the after band flute practice was a problem. Preparation is
