Cherishing the last moments with Blue Band
Drop, step, kneel. As a senior member of the Blue Band, I’m preparing for my last home game in Beaver Stadium this Saturday. After we march downfield, all the underclassmen members will drop their instruments, step out and kneel. The only members left standing will be the graduating seniors. This subtle gesture is a nod to four years of hard work — 15 hours of rehearsal per week, 7 a.m. game day wake up calls, brutally cold (or hot) weather, parades, pep rallies and so much more.
But if you asked the 65 graduating seniors of the Blue Band, I bet none of them would take any of it back. We all stepped on this campus in August 2012 with one mission in mind — to make the Blue Band. We moved in early, practiced countless hours and braved one of the most intimidating audition processes around. Because, to put it bluntly, the Blue Band is the mecca for band geeks. We persevered through four years of high school marching band — trust me it wasn’t all pretty — to finally make it to Penn State: a Happy Valley where the band is beloved and being a band geek is finally a source of pride.
But it’s not all For the Glory of wearing the uniform or playing the instrument. When you join the Blue Band, you become part of a family. A 323-member family, to be exact. Like most families, we have our good days and our not so good days. At the end of the day, we get through. Because Blue Band members bond over two things: our love for Penn State and our love for making great music. No one is in this for the money (because we don’t get any) or the credits (because we only get one). When you’re in the Blue Band, you get paid in moments. That first moment you put on the uniform. The first moment you march out of the tunnel. The first time you sing the alma mater, arm in arm with your fellow band members.
Now I have to brace myself for the lasts. The last time I put on the uniform. The last time I march out of the tunnel. The last time I play for thousands of Penn Staters, surrounded by some of the best people I have ever met. It’s OK; I know it wasn’t meant to last forever. The best things in life don’t. The one thing that is holding me together throughout these lasts is a saying often used by former director, Dr. Richard Bundy: Carpe the heck out of the diem.
So here it goes. One last game, one last chance to Raise the Song. I’m going to seize the day, and cherish my last moments as a piccolo player in the Penn State Blue Band. The only thing left to do is say thank you. Thank you to our staff, who continue to make us better. Thank you to the fans. Thank you to all the endlessly proud band parents. And most importantly, thank you to my 322 brothers and sisters. You made it all worth it.
Christine Kilbride is a senior at Penn State.
This story was originally published November 20, 2015 at 7:53 PM with the headline "Cherishing the last moments with Blue Band."