One shared dream. One shared accomplishment. One shared journey. One shared battle. No regrets. They all have their own stories, they all have their own opinions, and they all have their own experiences.

In 100-degree weather in the middle of summer, the marching band members were already in the parking lot rehearsing for hours on end to make their show something that the audience won’t forget.

“We talked a lot about what we wanted to try and achieve, which was essentially seven minutes that you could not take your eyes or ears away from,” band director Jared Morgan said. “But we wanted it to be an experience for the audience that said ‘I don’t want the show to be over.’ ”

The hours invested into the program aren’t for nothing. The time commitment over the last four years has been conditioning senior drum major Chris Sands for his future. Being able to maintain his academics and being successful in band has been difficult, but somehow he has managed it.

“Lack of sleep and time management definitely,” Sands said. “You realize that while your teacher is talking and lecturing, that’s whenever you have to do your homework, basically, because I mean, if you want to sleep, you have to sacrifice things like that.”

While the drum major was able to balance everything out, though, freshman Krystal Almond was struggling with her grades and the adjustment to high school.

“It can be stressful at times,” Almond said. “Like when teachers give you a lot of homework that’s due next class, and they expect it done neatly. And then sometimes you’re failing a class or you fail a test, and it’s hard to go to tutorials because you have band practice that you don’t want to miss.”

Band is a priority for these students, and the commitment and effort that they put into it is crazy. Senior and baritone section leader Sam Jecker has adjusted to the schedule that goes with marching band, but it’s still very difficult to keep up with everything.

“Grades are pretty hard,” Jecker said. “But when I just need help in school or anything like that I can always go talk to people because we’re all real close to each other because we spend every minute together during marching season.”

While there are hardships, there is a support system that they’ve formed with each other that has become something that some can’t live without. Their reasons for staying in band all four years are the same for almost everyone.

“Definitely the connections I made,” Sands said. “I love them. Some of my closest friends are in here, so I don’t know, definitely connections.”

Sands isn’t the only one who feels this way. Almond’s favorite part so far has been the friends, and one of the reasons that Jecker stayed in band was the unforgettable experience of the leadership lock-in his freshman year.

“As a freshman I got invited to the leadership lock-in because they used to invite people that they thought would be future leaders,” Jecker said. “I just had a really awesome time and it really opened my eyes to what the band family was all about.”

Even Almond feels as if band is a family and a team effort, and even if only one person goes down, they all go down. If one person is successful, they will all be able to take part and experience that success.

“I feel like the band is way more united in its purpose, and I feel like the level of buy-in from all of the members has been higher this year from an earlier point in the season,” Morgan said. “I feel like the band for the entire season has rehearsed better than I can remember, even with our flaws.”

Flaws. Just as any other activity, the band has good days and bad days, and the flaws poke out on the bad days; however, that might not be so bad for the band’s growth.

“When you have a bad experience, you remember it,” Morgan said. “So I think having the memory of not feeling good about a rehearsal is equally powerful and trying to avoid that feeling again.”

The feelings that replace the heartache from a disappointing run-through or a bad performance, however, are some that band members just can’t forget, especially if you’re the leader.

“It’s really exciting because whenever we hit, for instance, ‘The Great Gates (of Kiev),’ it’s like I hear the loud brass sound and I get really excited because I know that’s going to help,” Sands said. “The judge is going to realize that, and we’re going to do well at the competition. So it’s very exciting. It’s a very different experience every time which is awesome.”

After competing at the region contest, the band advanced to area, Oct. 25. The season ending marked post-marching season sadness for some members.

“It our last competition,” Jecker said. “And that’s a pretty big deal for me. You know, it’s my fourth year doing this. It doesn’t feel like it’s been that long. It’s one of those things where you never really think you’re going to see an end to it. You just think ‘Oh I’ll do it again next year,’ but this is the first time I can’t say I’m doing this again next year. It’s really kind of depressing. I’m definitely going to be upset, and I might end up doing band in college for the first year because I’m probably going to miss it.”

Regardless of how the season goes, and regardless of how the last performance ends, the band members feel that there will always be something to be proud of.

“It’s an activity that is judged,” Morgan said. “And whether or not you move on is based on the opinions of five [UIL judges]. You have to rest on the things that you can control, and the only thing you can control is what you do. So if you want to be happy at the end of the day, you have to reach for that perfection continuously and be proud of not giving up on that.”