Let the traveling begin

I won't lie. There is more than one joy in not having a church job. But the greatest joy in it is being able to sub for others. Several months ago, Edie Johnson emailed to ask if I was available and interested in covering Holy Week and Easter for her because she was pregnant and due on Palm Sunday. It has been my pleasure to cover for her this week on the mighty Aeolian-Skinner at Church Street United Methodist in Knoxville. As of this writing, it is Saturday early evening, and since Wednesday I have practiced for hours and played a choir rehearsal, a Maundy Thursday service, a Good Friday service, and a Saturday brass rehearsal. Tomorrow, Sunday, I'll play services at 6:30, 8:30, and 11:00. This has been a most enjoyable way to spend a Holy Week -- working and yet not working. Although I have worked hard and done what I do very well, I have also been to my favorite restaurants, helped Brad Rule tune a bit and enjoyed lunch with him, enjoyed getting to know Tim Ward at the church, and today I walked all over the Univ. of Tennessee campus and relived some memories of the 1982 World's Fair closer to downtown.

But that's not all. Tomorrow after church, I'm hitting the road to the Atlanta airport to catch a flight to Paris, followed by the TGV to parts east in France. I'm attending the annual meeting of the European Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. This annual meeting is always an organ tour in some corner of Europe, during Easter week. This year, it's Strasbourg, St-Avold, and Metz. What a way to unwind after Holy Week and Easter!