In 2008, the monumental struggle of keeping me seated on the piano bench began between my mother and me. Six years later, I successfully escaped, but in a music-saturated house, did not get far before picking up the trombone, which has remained my close companion, and occasionally my enemy, since. Being from a very small, very rural community, I hadn’t even heard of handbells until I attended a summer music camp in Hastings. Playing terribly yet enthusiastically, I was amazed by the physicality of the handbell. Here was an instrument that required a fantastic amount of movement and coordination. You even got to punch it into a pad! This enthusiasm for handbells played a large part in my college decision, as Concordia University is the only college in Nebraska with a handbell choir. Since then, I have continued to play enthusiastically, shedding my terribleness with commitment and experience. I have played handbells in Concordia’s choirs for three years. In that time, I have learned much about musicality and group performance from the handbells’ unique kind of musical dissection, relying heavily on the rest of the performing group. I love being an independent part of a massive chord that, unlike in band, I can see the full shape of on the page. I’ve had the opportunity to attend ringing workshops, meet composers, and demonstrate ringing to churches and schools through tours and performances. I especially enjoyed the opportunity to play all of Cathy Mokelbust’s compositions at her workshop in Lincoln this year. Besides these, I had a blast playing Jason Krug’s “Exultate” and “Fantasy on Ebenezer” arranged by Sondra Tucker. Since beginning to ring, I have had many opportunities to explain handbell music to those in rural areas, like where I came from. Many have never heard of handbells before, much less their music, or had the opportunity to play. This is especially true since there are no choirs anywhere in their area and no churches large enough to support one. When I became aware that Nebraska has hand chimes and handbell loan opportunities, it became my goal to share this opportunity with rural schools. I believe that many schools in Nebraska would take advantage of handbell loans if they were aware of their availability. Since learning to ring at Concordia, I have been making an effort to connect with music directors in the Sandhills area about handbell playing. This process has begun with introducing students to recorded and live handbell performances. There hasn’t been an opportunity for them to play yet but knowing that handbell loans are an option for them has made music directors take steps in the direction of procuring them. Ringing has become an important staple of my musical pursuits, and I intend to take the skills I have learned from it to other handbell opportunities. I am also excited for the leadership opportunities Concordia’s handbell choir is offering, as we no longer have a director and will need a lot of capable student leaders. Beyond leadership, the team aspect of handbells has taught me lessons about communication, delegation, tenacity, and humility that transfer into my career field. I am glad to have stumbled into playing handbells when I did, have the opportunity to ring with a high-level choir, and, of course, played many pieces that involve punching my bells into the pad.