No concert was scheduled today. The main achievement of the day was making our way from Russell, MA to Lancaster County, PA. Our wonderful hosts from Pioneer Valley Mennonite Fellowship fed us breakfast in their homes, then shuttled us to the church where the bus awaited us. We departed around 8:15. Various forms of social activity took place on the bus, including but not limited to one-on-one interaction with books and phones, dreaming, Rook games, and frequent outbursts of conversation with other occupants of the bus. By all appearances, everyone had a pleasant and relaxing day, with the exception of Stan and Lavelle, who took turns navigating the busy roads of New England and the Greater New York City Area. (Whether this term is an official designation or not, the writer believes that it could include an area upwards of 150 square miles and may contain a greater number of vehicles than the entire state of Montana.) The boredom associated with the slow progress was punctuated at times with nice views of the NYC skyline. We had a half-hour rest stop in Milford, CT, where Dunkin Donuts proved popular. Lunch break was enjoyed at a plaza in the Bronx, NY. Many of us flocked to Panera Bread and Applebee’s; several checked out the Dallas BBQ joint. The heavy traffic slowed us down enough that Joe straitly charged us to make our afternoon rest stop a snappy one. We accomplished the on/off procedure in a shade less than 10 minutes. Roll call on the bus reached a new level of intensity with the assistance of a metronome – there were mixed feelings on the effectiveness of this method. We arrived at Springwood Farm for a picnic supper of tasty haystacks, served by Dwight & Brenda on their front lawn. Several lively games of volleyball then ensued in the back yard. As darkness fell over Lancaster County, a troop of sweaty people boarded the bus for the ride back to Ephrata Mennonite School, where tour had begun 6 days earlier. The bus was unloaded and given a quick cleaning, and OC members went off to their local lodges, anticipating a rigorous first day of recording on the morrow. Per conductor’s orders: “Downbeat at 9:00.” We thank the Father for His mercies on this tour!
Matthew Miller
Tenor ll