So much for resolutions....

So much for my New Years' resolution to write on here at least once a week. Things get busy, and blogging falls last on my list of priorities when I have 19-hour school days. So much has happened since February. One, I've decided to stay at Westminster Choir College. I decided through much prayer, thought, and input from my friends and piano teacher from WI that I should give my current teacher another semester before I make my final decision. I was so sick the first semester that I was incapable of giving my best to my piano teacher. This semester, I was so focused on last semester being terrible that I decided I wanted to transfer. Then I focused on audition repertoire for transferring as well as audition repertoire for competitions. Trying to perfect 15 early advanced to advanced piano pieces all at once was literally impossible for me to do. Hence, I really have been incapable of giving my teacher my all this semester and last semester. I hope and pray that next semester will be better piano-wise. I have also structured my time much better this semester. I'm getting between 4 and 6 hours of sleep a night rather than random all-nighters here and there and averaging 3 hours of sleep a night. However, in the past week, thanks to the overabundance of pollen everywhere (with New Jersey apparently being the worst state in the country for pollen right now), I believe I've developed allergies. So not fun. The past week, I've felt miserable. I've never had to deal with seasonal allergies before. As far as this summer goes, I will be accompanying church services in River Falls again. I will also be taking piano lessons somewhere in the twin cities (I'm waiting for my piano teacher to get back to me with which of her colleagues she'd like me to study with over the summer...she literally has connections around the nation and even a few around the world). I am currently attempting to get an internship at a couple of arts organizations to build my skills and resume over the summer. I guess the more I study Arts Administration, the more I realize I could be quite happy being an arts administrator. That doesn't mean I enjoy it as much as playing or performing piano. But it's something I could see myself doing if all else failed. This upcoming fall, I have a job opportunity that I have to discuss more with my parents. A program coordinator for a middle/high school for kids with disabilities asked me to coordinate a music program for the fall. The pay is incredibly amazing. But far greater than the pay, the experience would be amazing. And the possible impact I could have on some of the kids would be even greater. And although I definitely don't want to be a music teacher for the rest of my life, I think I'd get a lot of joy out of bringing music into kids' lives, most of whom probably feel like they don't have a place to fit. And maybe music can bring the kids together. And greater than that, maybe the Lord can use me to make an impact on their lives. Anyway, I need to get back to writing my 70-page final project for arts admin.
Later,
Rachel