“Even after a month and a half of quarantine, I’m not sure I’ve fully registered what’s happened. As we neared the final stretch of our drumline season, the excitement emanating from the other members was palpable. Our previous year was the first time in a decade that Kings was able to compete in WGI world championship finals, and our fall marching band season ended with Kings coming out on top of our class. Our potential was staggering, and every member was relentless in pushing ahead and improving in order to show the world what we could do… and poof, in the span of about two days our season was cut short; just one measly month before finals.

Earlier in highschool I gazed fondly at my final season of drumline. I dreamt of the pride to be felt representing our group at retreat, raising my hand on community night when Mr. Maegly asked the seniors to identify themselves, and walking off of the performance floor for the last time, knowing that we showed that judge panel the very best version of Kings that we had to offer. Those dreams are lost with the season now, and there’s an endlessly complicated web of emotions that take their place. Sadness, sure, but there’s so much more than that. Anger, disappointment, confusion, disbelief, and yet I couldn’t shake a feeling of understanding and contentment with my senior year. Quarantine was a necessary evil, and I had taken solace in the fact that the Kings High School Drumline didn’t waste any time getting down to business: everyone was more than willing to put the work into getting better, and that made our time together deeply rewarding and enjoyable. I don’t regret a single second of the season, and have witnessed so much growth from my fellow musicians- both in their skill and their character. As a senior member, there’s not much more I could’ve asked for.

Although I constantly yearn for one last performance, I can’t help but look back at the season with a huge grin on my face. My time with the Kings Indoor Drumline is no doubt going to stick with me through life as a college student and, eventually, a scientific researcher. Not even a global pandemic can change that.”