Needless to say I did not anticipate my SGC career ending prematurely on account of a viral pandemic but alas, life continues to prove itself unpredictable. Condensing my proudest accomplishments, innumerable rehearsals, and the greatest friendships I’ve ever had seems an impossible feat but these days I have nothing but time on my hands.
When I auditioned for SGC during my sixth grade year, I could never have predicted that I would fall in love with a 20 minute Christmas suite or sing on a competition stage in a small Welsh town or that solfege was more than some made up syllables from The Sound of Music. All I knew was that I loved to sing.
My time with SGC has been the single most influential part of my life so far. This organization and the people within it have shaped me into the person I am today and the person I will be tomorrow. Choir taught me that selflessness is the key to success. Choir showed me what it felt like to contribute to a sound greater than the sum of its parts. Choir proved to me every Monday and Wednesday that my voice was important and valuable, and gave me confidence to use my voice for more than just singing. Most importantly, choir has given me a sisterhood for life. The friends I met in a church basement are the same friends who taught me to parallel park in Volunteer Park before rehearsal. The same people who hugged me after a breakup, reminded me boys are dumb anyways, and then fell asleep on my couch after watching half a season of “Grey’s Anatomy”. They are the people I will be friends with for the rest of my life. They are the smartest, strongest, kindest, most thoughtful, most talented, and most beautiful people I’ve ever met.
I’m of course disappointed that the end of my time with SGC didn’t go according to plan. I panicked when I realized that I couldn’t recall the song we sang in the rehearsal I didn’t know would be my last, and that I didn’t savor what it felt like to walk out of the church doors tired but satisfied and excited for the coming rehearsal. It felt a very sudden loss in March but over the 2(!?!?!) months I’ve had to reflect on my high school experience and create for myself the closure I expected to gain from ceremonies and concerts, I’ve realized that this isn’t really the end anyways. I have nothing but the deepest appreciation and thanks for every faculty member, every chorister, every parent, and every audience that has made this organization what it is and I am counting the days until I can safely take my seat and watch SGC take the stage and brighten life with their song.
-Isabella Martinez
May 2020
