A Continual Feast

Well my friends... I am home for the summer.

All those days of cleaning and packing were a little crazy. I'm tired of having to pack up everything I own into a few boxes at the end of every year. I'd like a nice house, please, where I can settle down and stay for as long as I like.

I went to the "Last Blast" concert done by the various brass ensembles, and I am going to miss the quintet SO much next year. There's simply no one to fill the shoes of Lauren, Jaana, and Justin. It'll be a big hole. I love the Gordon College Brass Quintet.

The end of the year was great, and poignant as well since so many of my good friends were graduating. Choir sang in Baccalaureate, and then I went to the graduation ceremony the next day and watched my friends become official college graduates. Wow. In a way I felt the most sentimental about Jaana graduating; not only because she's a great friend but also because she's a fellow music major and her life shows me a picture of where I might be a year from now.

You know, I am turning into a grown-up and it's scary...

I have spent a great deal of time considering what my plans for the future will be. Mom suggests I try to graduate in December to save all the extra loans that Spring semester will bring, but it's really impossible - especially since the community college here is lame and offers nothing, nada, zilch in the way of courses I need... not even Spanish II! At least that's not the only thing standing between me and a diploma in December, or else I'd be really frustrated. I have other classes that I need and a senior recital to give that I can't possibly be ready for in the fall (especially since I'm playing The Lark Ascending with the orchestra in the fall!). Further, it's really important that I have the time of Spring semester anyway, to practice and sort things out, especially if I'm considering grad school... which is really up in the air as of now. I'm really wavering back and forth on that one at this point - am I even good enough to get in anywhere? Do I really want to go to grad school? What kind of life do I want to have? The answer is a big question mark for now, but that's okay I think.

There are other things to consider too, like the fact that orchestra may be taking a tour (!!), choir is most definitely going to Italy next summer (!!!!), and all of these things require money... which will be scarce and precious to me as I approach graduation and realize that I will soon be out in the open, facing the big bad world with nothing to protect me but my little violin and the meager skills of playing it that I've hopefully aquired over the past few years. (Me, dramatic? Nah...)

Favorite Boy is home in Erie PA for the time being, and he'll soon return to Gordon for the rest of the summer to take up the position of organist at another church... it's a new job and a great opportunity for him. Hopefully he'll also be able to come visit me out in CA later in the summer.

I leave this coming Wednesday to visit my sister Emily, my brother-in-law Gabe, and my adorable nephew Jonathan, whom I have yet to meet! I'm so excited. I even get to babysit Jonathan while Emily and Gabe go out to celebrate their anniversary. I'll also get to attend the Torrey graduation ceremony of my former class... which includes among other people, Libby! I'm excited about that, too. By the way, it's positively weird how my friends are spread out all over the country.