WHOO HOO HOOOOOOOO," all twelve of us yelled after cramming ourselves together onto a large slick section of vinyl flooring we borrowed from the Scene Design Shop to plunge down the Mt. Everest of hills with perfect packed down snow.
Only there was a slight problem though. Near the bottom one had to be very careful (assuming one had any control of what one was riding on) to aim going stage left because you see if one went stage right one would plow into a creek. Plunging into a creek during winter is something most of us try very hard to avoid if possible.
The other friends I was plunging down this huge Mt. Everest hill with were the ones I wrote about in my blog describing Dr. Sonderling's last ever elite Scene Painting class we had the honor of having been chosen for.
Since we had to spend so much of our time together painting assignments on MASSIVE canvas flats we nine young men and two young ladies became very close. Actually Dr. Sonderling was profoundly touched by just how supportive and close a group we were.
The last day of his last class Dr. Sonderling said to us as he kept choking back tears, "All of you have formed
a very touching deep bond always looking out for each other, helping each other, having fun, laughing and hugging. A camaraderie I have not seen like this ever before. The eleven of you have become very special to me. I could not have asked to end my teaching career with a finer group. And all talented as hell too. I feel so proud and privileged to know you. Please keep in touch with me! By the way, what in the world are you going to do with the vinyl you asked to borrow? I'm curious."
Sooo, this is how seventy-two year old Dr. Sonderling wound up on this large piece of slick vinyl flooring with his eleven students careening down Mt. Everest at high speed. From the top of this hill none of us could see how at stage left where we HAD to go if we wanted to avoid plowing into the creek, a very unexpected rise had been built in the snow for the purpose of becoming very airborne.
Now I have a feeling my dear readers are wondering what happened, are you not? I daresay you would really like to know how our flight landed. So please hold on tight and keep reading to the end...the...very...end.😃
All of my other ten friends in dear Dr. Sonderling's final
Scene Painting class and I kept in touch with each other through the years (well now you at least know WE survived Mt. Everest anyway...sort of...😂). And we all kept our promise to keep in touch with Dr. Sonderling the remainder of his life too (yes, he too survived Mt. Everest...kind of🙃).
Although my other ten friends and I kept in touch the last time we all were ever together was that plunge we made down Mt. Everest. For as life often does when one's heart is in theatre, the roads we travel and places theatre takes us are many. Two of my friends landed Scene Design positions at prestigious theatres in New York and Seattle. Another in LA. One continued his Scene Design studies all the way to Oxford in England. Loved England so much he remained there many years (and where have those years gone so fast?).
Two of my other friends found living in many different places not what they really wanted yet to remain in theatre landed Scene Design jobs at a university because they married each other. Another friend of
the ten began teaching Theatre Scene Design at a performing arts high school.
One of our ten died in a theatre shop accident. And one we have no idea what happened to or where he is.
And finally the last you have been following her journey here.
Our dear Dr. Sonderling lived to the young age of
ninety-one. I was able to see him one final time when he was eighty-six. He was thrilled to see me and though he was having trouble remembering people he had no problem with knowing who I was.
"Adelaide! My amazing little Scene Painter who draws and paints from dark to light instead of light to dark! And who dances with horses!"
So assuming you have made it this far without giving
up to see how Mt. Everest ended I will not keep you in suspense any longer.
I left you hanging as we were careening down Mt. Everest at high speed unaware a snow rise was built at stage left, the only way for us to go without flying into the creek at stage right. And we had a seventy-two year old Dr. Sonderling who had been keen to join us but by now was probably wishing he hadn't.
In very quick succession we suddenly saw the friggin rise built in the snow, then we reached heights no one else riding on a piece of floor vinyl with twelve people have surely ever attained before in all the history of hoomans.
The guys thought we had to hit that rise doing 40mph but it had to be at least 90mph. We hit that sucker and we went flying waaay high.
How high?
Well Dr. Sonderling swore he saw a flock of birds flying below us, however I cannot attest to that. I know we
did pass through some clouds though.
Somehow after we returned to earth again we landed and for a brief moment it appeared our destiny was to take a plunge in the icy creek. Though we never told Dr. Sonderling this fact we think his weight on the stage left portion of the vinyl miraculously shifted us away from those icy waters, and most of all, sparing him from that fate because we cared so much about him.
We still kept speeding down the rest of Mt. Everest
until we at last hit a series of snowdrifts before finally coming to a stop.
All twelve of us cheered, jumped up and down and hugged each other. Dr. Sonderling said this was the most fun he had in years! It was indeed a thrill for us all. The serendipitous spur of the moment events in our lives always are. That's why we all need them.
During my visit with Dr. Sonderling when he was eighty-six, there was something else he remembered because it was one of the best moments of his life.
Dr. Sonderling asked, "Adelaide, do you remember that moment when we hit the snow rise and we became airborne so high I saw a flock of birds flying below us?"
"Oh yes, Dr. Sonderling. If I remember correctly I believe you saw those right after we passed through all those clouds in the sky."😂💫🎭
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