OPINION
School's just around the corner, but first comes preparations for marching season.
My oldest daughter has spent this week at a camp at the school to prepare for the band season, and I love seeing her excitement about performing in the marching band.
It's truly amazing the impact music can have, whether that's from performing it or just listening to it.
Music can change your mood.
It can boost your focus.
It can help you work through emotions—good or bad—that have been pent up and need to come out.
Music, too, can provide a way to connect with others.
That can be in the form of working together to create it.
It can also be in the form of listening to live performances together.
For some, a shared love of a musician or band can help you find a full community that you can bond with.
On Monday, I had the chance to go to the Pilot Point Middle School campus to speak with people who dedicate their summers to the Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps.
They were in town to practice before heading to McKinney to perform their show, Bloodline. You have to be dedicated to what you're doing to be willing to sweat in the Texas sun for hours as you practice meticulous movements. Their love and passion for what they do was clear. That's the power music has.
There's very little in this life quite like when a musician hits just the right combination and you get goosebumps.
As a former band nerd, I'm so excited that both of my girls have fallen in love with band, too, and that this year will mark the start of six years of solid marching band seasons where I will be listening to and watching my own kids and their close friends make magic happen on the field.
Texas football might be king, but it wouldn't be the same without our amazing marching band musicians in the stands.
Abigail Bardwell is the Editor & Publisher of the Post-Signal, and she serves on both the North and East Texas Press Association and the Texas Press Association boards. She can be reached at abardwell@postsignal. com.
