THE CHORAL POETRY

 

 “If you are not a risk taker, you are not exploring and enjoying your life either” - Robson Jani

I was a coordinator of choral poetry many years ago in 2017. I was in my second year of high school and with a little close opportunity to win a prize for my group of class. Every year in the high school where I studied, there was a competition about choral poetry and every classroom has to participate and make a wonderful choreography with the coordination of a person. But, in my second year my classroom was not having a coordinator while this activity required to have one. In my second year in the high school, the things were not so good because the principal changed the professor in my classroom. Later on, the professor Carlos who gave the mathematics classes takes over the classroom, but some days after he was not there because he was sick. When the time to start practice the choral poetry arrived, my professor was not there. So, the principal gave an opportunity to my classroom and gave us a chance to choose the coordinator of the group from the students in the class in a democratic way through voting. As a result, the majority of my classmates agreed to put me as a coordinator. I was a little surprised and worried, my face was red and unconsciously I put my hands in my hair like something catastrophic was happen. Effectively, it was for me a big disaster in my mind, thinking that I was not capable to manage all my partners as a single movement in the choreography of the choral poetry, everything would be a disaster with me as the coordinator, because I was not the most competent person to do it. I said: ”coordinator! - No!”, but there was the director and I did not say anything else. The decision was in my hands, but in my mind was resound the question: - Why they did not choose the president of the class as the coordinator nor the popular girls in the classroom or someone else?, I think it was for the creativity that I had or it could be because I had good relationship with all the guys in the classroom not only with my friends but also with all my classmates including the shy boys. I really appreciate the confidence they felt to me. However, the idea did not like me, that was a big responsibility. Even dough it was not what I wanted, I took the challenge to be the coordinator of my group of class.

Two days later, I propose at all of them to give an option of poem in order to choose one for the choral poetry. Indeed, they brought the poems and some of them were anonymous, others were really short and others too much large. I gave my opinion and some of them agreed that the poem they brought was not the best option while others did not agree with me. However, I did not choose the one that I preferred or the one they preferred. Then, as a savior arrived the director giving some poems of Alfredo Espino in order to choose one of them. The poems in the competition were only of Alfredo Espino. So, my partners and I chose the one with the tittle of “Ascension”. Here, my work started. I went to the library and photocopied the page of that poem of Alfredo Espino. The next day, I gave at all a page with that poem and I said it would be not easy to memorize, but we would try to do it as soon as possible to prepare the choral poetry with enough time. So, we decided to spend the break training the poem in the classroom and we were the first section that started to practice it. With the doors closed, my group started to make the repetitions chorally until our voices sounded out like one voice in the classroom. I was the leader and I decided to learn very rapidly the poem, but I was patient because my partners did not take as a serious activity while I really wanted them to take it with responsibility and had memorized all the poem quickly. As a good beginning in the coordination of the process in that days were calmed and without problems.

 

Alfredo Espino(1900-1928)

The next week, I said it was time to go out and start to think and make the choreography of the choral poetry during break time. The whole group was in the soccer field,  there was not grass there was only pavement, this was the unique big space in the educative center that we could use to practice without problems of space. The advantage to be the first group practicing was all the space only for us. On the other hand, the problems arrived within the group. In the time that I was thinking about how to make the choreography, the popular girls of my classroom started to show disagreements about my guidance and said that I was not doing well the things, at the same time the president of the class showed her disagreements and her friends followed the rebellious actions. So, I decided to give them a chance to guide the group. However, the rest of my partners were not happy with the change of leader. The popular girls, the president and her friends tried to guide the group but they could not do it , they were only that day as a leader because the rest of my partners get angry and did not want to work with them as a leader for the impatient they had. Then, they did not want to continue practicing with me. My friends were consoling me, because I felt really sad, all the effort and all the time practicing the poetry was lost. We were in the middle of March and the competition was in the second week of June. the class group did not want to practice again during a month. I felt really bad and I tried to talk with them, but they ignored my words. I was thinking that it was my pain. The days passed, the teacher was in the hospital and I was in troubles of cooperation and coordination. The director called me and said that if the class group did not participate we would be erased of the list of groups for the competition. I almost said him to erase my group of the list, but I thought it was my responsibility to not give up and with my coloured face full of shame and a trembling voice I said him that my group will continue in the competition, though I was not sure I said him to let us as the last group in the competition. All was a total chaos for me. The others group had prepared all the choreography for that day and they only were practicing and memorizing the movements and the choral voice while my group only did memorize the poem. I would have a month or less time to practice and try to win the competition. I was feeling the weight of the world on me because I really wanted that my group could be the winner. My friends told me that it was necessary to talk with the people who started that rupture and I decided to talk with the girls. As girls , we are thought to be problematic. Well,  I exactly did not know the answer, I was only a girl that wanted to be a good coordinator. Some minutes later, I decided to solve the problem and talk with the popular girls in my classroom that started the disagreement. Then, it was necessary to talk with the president of the class and her friends. After that, to talk with the whole class for joining all again. The whole class become conscious of the problem, noticed that the time and the effort would not be a lost of time and energy. I acted in time. We only were having less of a month to continue practicing, but not was ass the conditions we were having before, because at that time all the other groups were practicing in the soccer field and there was not space for us, there. So, the whole class decided to work in the classroom in the break time and in the free mathematics hour classes of our professor. So, together without disagreements and with the cooperation of all giving new ideas to the choral poetry and giving our best, the days passed slowly. I felt really exciting to be their coordinator and I really wanted them to feel the same as me. I was feeling me as the most successful girl in the planet. However, my thoughts were being invaded for the short time I had to make a wonderful choral poetry in my group. I said them that only the union make the force and that it was not relevant the prize, but the real value was to give the best of ourselves. Though, the time was too short I was thinking: “I can do it with the cooperation of all of them” - “We can do it! “. They understood my point and tried to do the things in a creative way, giving ideas, some of them were not amazing, but with the ideas of all together our choral poetry looked so original and fantastic, something never seen before and it was not easy to believe that we did it in a very short time. Sometimes tired, sometimes angry with ourselves, others laughing, sometimes wailing about our tired muscles. But,  every single person understood that he or she was a key to the whole group to rise up the section 2-2 (which was my classroom identification in the academic community) and that was the way to do it ,because we really needed to work as one to give value to the big effort we were doing.

The final day arrived, the professor came back of the hospital and he said that was ready to see the results of my coordination. That words came to me as a bucket of cold water on my body. All the time, I passed waiting at him and his help while he did disappear in the hospital. I did not blame him for the illness he had, but I passed really difficult moments without his guidance. Nevertheless, due to him, I was having the most great experience in my seventeen years old. In the meantime, I felt hug nervous in a point that my skirt was trembled, I was not quit like my hands, my hands were in my stomach, in my head, including the nails on my teeth, I did not know what else to do waiting for the time to pass with our choral poetry. Meanwhile, I was remembering all the words I said at my partners before the competition started, I just did not know of where did I find all of them. I said them congratulations for all the effort they did, because the disagreements nor the division could had lost the feelings we were having at hat moment and that every of them had a power to leave at whatever moment they wanted, the only necessary thing was felt the motivation and the courage to show it at all the people all the things we were capable to do it. After that, the competition started. There were eight groups to pass before my group of class. So, I was really anxious moving my foot without stopping, we were the last group to participate in the competition. When the principal called my group, I felt how the blood flow through my veins and I felt my skin open. The emotion invaded the time and the only thing I wanted was to show how the group that I was coordinating passed from the fall to the rise. Indeed, I coordinated with my movements all the choreography and my partners did it wonderful. As a result, my group made the biggest impact in the competition with the original ideas of choreography and with the best coordination never seen in all the groups that passed before. I was very happy listening that words from the jury. So, the competition finished and the jury were making the decision of the prizes to the first, second and third place. The minutes was passing and I felt an eternity of time waiting for their decision while all the groups were stood up and tired about the activity because all of them made a big effort. However, my group made the biggest effort coming alive from the ashes. I was thinking in my mind: I would really appreciate if they gave us a third place in the competition, it could be great. Even dough I knew all the big effort I did to maintain my group joined, I was not waiting for the first place in the competition. The minutes passed, the jury started to say the group that won the third place in the competition, but sadly it was not my group. Then, they mentioned the second place. I was waiting, maybe the second place was for us, but as a result it was not for my group. My heart was heavy and the sadness invaded my thoughts. All the moment with my dear partners were in my mind; when doing disagreements, when crying,  when we I we were tired, when the group was divided, when the whole group did not want to participate and when I almost  gave up. The time did a pause in my mind and I was seeing my partners and thinking how they changed their mind to fight against their own and that the way how they did it was the big prize for all of us. Just in that moment, my ears was listening the judges saying: “the first place is for section 2-2”. I broke in tears! -It was my group!, I was shocked. the first place!

At that moment, all my partners were making a circle and gave me a big huge. When came back to the classroom,  they said that they believed impossible to participate, but with the courage they saw in me they did it. In the beginning, I did not want to be a coordinator, but I made a big labor in my first time being one with thirty people as my pupils. I could see that if I gave up my partners too. My labor as a coordinator was not easy but in the more arduous time I found myself and I help my partners to find themselves to appreciate the big treasure they had in their heart. In that way, I did comprehend that sometimes I would be the light to illuminate the way of others and make my own bright way for my future through the experiences I could had. Even dough , the experiences could be the worst or the best, all make a difference and a footprint in my life.  As a result of my experience in the choral poetry I learned that if I did not take risks, I would never know how much I could accomplish in my life, because due to that  experiences lived, I learned that what I needed was find myself and with my little knowledge, my courage and my passion to do my best I can do whatever I wanted and that the limitation was only in my mind.