In a community chorus, I add
to the group an unremarkable
voice which over time has faded
with the color of my hair.
Alto for years, I once knew
my place, or could easily find it,
or even just wing it without hurting
the overall harmony.
But the slip of my range led me
to migrate to the tenors where
I can get lost—where should I be??
Odd to feel so alone in a chorus of singers.
One rehearsal, a cheerful teen with dark hair
was standing next to me. I recognized him:
“Were you the tenor soloist last year?”
He was. I shared my delight with him.
Then the group sang, and I was in
glorious company, my plain voice
blending into his wonderful easy tenor.
I think I’m in love with Ethan Moreno.
Anne Palmer lives in Kendal at Oberlin, in Ohio. After Oberlin College, a long journey of discovery led her to a Master’s in Public Health at age 49. Before and after the degree she lived in Asia with her family. Today her adult daughter works in Denver, and her husband and she are back in Oberlin where, after a hiatus of 60(!) years, she has resumed choral singing.
