Personal Narrative: Marching Band

Over the years, I have grown to be an increasingly active member of my community. I began in the sixth grade when I was a member of a local society called Students on a Mission, sponsored by my school. We did various things in the community around our school, such as, maintaining the vegetation and cleaning, and visiting the nearby nursing home. Outside of school, I worked in the community through my church. For a few years, on alternating Sundays, I visited the Heritage of Dover, and sang and interacted with the elderly there. It was always a fun experience because the residents would be so happy to see us and I enjoyed watching them clap, or even dance along to our music. On holidays, their faces lit up when we brought them candy, or chocolate, and presents. Not only did I

Throughout my school career, I have been in various bands, vocal ensembles, and vocal classes. My favorite ensemble by far, is marching band. Marching band was one of the biggest experiences of my life because I was given the opportunity to travel and play music in a way that I had never done before. Marching band gave me a leadership experience I will never forget. As section leader of the alto saxophones, it was not easy to teach six underclassmen how to march and memorize music, along with keeping all fifteen members of my section in order. I had to learn how to be a friendly and fun leader, along with being respected and authoritative. The most memorable award I received was the Instrumental Music Department Letter Award, which reminded of how much work I put into my years as a member of the various band ensembles in my school. Another membership that has taught me a lot is the National Honors Society. As a member of NHS, I had to take a lot of responsibilities. I was more involved in the community, and I was forced to keep my grades up, which was not a problem because it is in my nature to always do my