34 stories for my 34th birthday, penultimate installment

32. I love to sing. I learned to sing from Cheryl Minnick, the pastor's wife in the sect in which I grew up. She and her husband both had music degrees, and they sang really well. In fact, here's a funny story about them singing. They loved to sing southern gospel style music. I used to love to listen to that music. It's sung in multiple part harmony. Here's an old favorite of mine from the fairly well known, in southern gospel circles, Cathedral Quartet.



I also learned from Cheryl's daughter Tiffany, who sang *rather* beautifully. When I was on LOGOS II, I became part of an 8 member ensemble. We sang in Italy and Albania and Turkey. There was Marco, from Italy, me, Simon from Scotland, Christine form Germany, and alas 4 others whom I cannot at this moment remember. It was enormous fun.

In summer of 2000, at a baptism, which was a bit of a party, the entire Minnick family, Cheryl, Tom, Chad, Shawn, and Tiffany all gathered in semicircle to sing a little song Cheryl had written in acapella 5 part harmony, for my soon to be fiance Megan. The song had been written by Cheryl for her then fiance Tom years previously, at Bible College, and involved two character who were worms, one of whose names (the male character) was "Willy". Willy worm and his amour (Wanda, perhaps?) fall in love with each other in this cute little song. I had been innocent enough, at some level, that, having heard this song several times growing up, it had never occurred to me that there were any ribald possible implications. Megan, on the other hand, instantly saw such implication (Willy Worm????), and was sort of forced, by politeness, to stand and listen to the entire pastor's family singing the entire song acapella. It's actually quite hilarious. There were even little hand movements involving a forefinger pretending to be Willy worm, singing his little heart out.

33. must off to see magic show and dinner at community center. will be back later with 33 and 34.

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