To completely closed the chapter of my internship in Leonberg, I need to write a report and go for a viva voce. And this has caused many sleepless night, but the viva voce turned out to be a very pleasant conversation with the 4 interviewer.
Not every intern experienced corona during their internship, but I have “privilege” to experience this. Of course the interviewers were eager to know how I managed the situation. My answer was:
“At the beginning it was really difficult. When the new corona’s regulation was announced, we have to draw new plan. As the new plan just done, ready to launch, suddenly the regulation change again. And we have to abandon the new plan and start it all over again.
But after a year, I guess I’m trained to think out of box and able to act spontaneously. Instead of keep waiting for a better time to come, I prefer to focus on what could be done now to make the worship service beautiful.”
Mr. A: “According to your report, you brought chamber music into the worship service. I was once in your concert, I can see you have a good feeling with chamber music, would you continue to work in this way after corona? Or do you wish the worship service back to normal as before.”
Me: The participation of congregation in worship service with singing is very important, which is now impossible. For this point, I hope it can be back to normal as before.
As for liturgy, I do not wish it to come back to normal as before. I understood the importance of liturgy in guiding the worship service, however, when the liturgy become routine, it turned out to be an invisible cage that confined us.
Because of corona, the cage is force opened, I feel liberty to do experiment and exploring new possibilities in preparing worship service. One of the products was weaving chamber music into worship service. The sound is refreshing and it helps the congregation feel not too bad when they are not allowed to sing.
Mr. B: “Miss Wong, what you are doing is emergency solution. But this corona situation could not be forever like this, would not you wish for the cultural event to come back?”
His eyes like pleading me to say that I wish it to come back very much, because he could not bear it otherwise. I felt his pain, some of my many abandoned projects occurred in my mind as he asked me this question. They were: Bach’s Actus Tragicus, Sacred Song Recital, Dvorak’s Te Deum, Mendelssohn’s Lobgesang etc. I have to sigh deeply every time I think of them.
Me: I share your opinion that the situation could not be like this for a long time. I wish the concert hall open again as soon as tonight wholeheartedly. However, I refuse to view the emergency solution as second best. I appreciate every little possibility that still available now. When the emergency solution can bring good result, we would have some more options for doing worship service in the future.
Mr. C: “Please expand your point about liturgy.”
Me: Our liturgy rooted in Jewish tradition. As the Christianity spread, the liturgy adapt Greece and Roman influences. During Reformation, Martin Luther see the need of using mother tongue in worship service, he reformed the liturgy. Now we are using different liturgy across Germany. I can see that, to keep changing is a constant element in the history of liturgy, in order to meet the need of today’s world. Now I have 2 questions for you. First, when was the last time we revised our liturgy? Second, for how long are you planning to keep the current liturgy form?
Mrs. D grinned, Mr. C grinned, Mr. B grinned and Mr. A too. When everyone grinned it promise a happy end in this chapter. And it is a happy end.
Shortly after the viva voce, I received the quarantine notice. I gasped that the notice came after the viva voce but not before. Thing could be really complicated if I can not complete the internship on time. I was so close to corona, so close to unable to complete my internship on time. Still, I am safe, I completed the internship, and now I am in my new flat. Therefore, give thanks!