Wednesday, 13 September 2006

Blessed in the Cold Rain
It sure didn't seem like one of those days. Jay's noisy clock woke me up before mine went off, it was cold in the room (that jet engine A/C is STILL running nonstop), and it was raining like crazy. "Oh great... another rainy day at Hope and I have an 8:30 class. Fantastic."

As much as I have dreaded trying to learn to play band and orchestra instruments, it hasn't been all that bad. Prof. Leach's disarming personality keeps me from getting too horrified in class when I'm not playing my French horn well, which is a lot of the time. Although the class's attention was clearly focused on how I wasn't playing well, I managed to not let it get to me. Maybe I am growing up (uh-oh).

Chapel always helps make a day better, as was the case today. And being put in a good mood offset my slight nervousness in our second Music Lit quiz. Even though a lot of my classmates seem to be bored or just plain annoyed with the class, I must admit I'm enjoying it. The fact that I'm so fascinated with the heavily academic aspects of music (history and theory) as well as performance and just attending concerts/recitals makes me think I should look at teaching at the higher level. I have no doubt God will reveal to me in His time what I should do, but the whole waiting thing in the meantime gets a little tough sometimes.

Voice lessons are so much more enjoyable this year than they were, say, freshman year. I'm starting to see how much I've learned from Dr. Richmond and Dr. Buettner. It's hard to imagine that I'm only in my third year of voice lessons with ANYONE. No one believes me, but it is true. Anyway, planning a junior recital is kind of scary, but I'm honestly pretty psyched right now. I never would have dreamed I'd feel like that but it is truly exciting to me. We'll see how I feel in March when it's time, but right now I'll say I'm excited.

Form and Analysis-what can I say? It's all the juniors with our weirdness that has been known since freshman year and Dr. Hodson. Who else could I joke around with about Schumann's Album for the Young and one of the pieces being called "***" besides this crew?

I love Chapel Choir. We're doing awesome music, we have a kick-butt tenor section this year, and this year's Vespers will be on television. That makes me happy mostly for the fact that on this performance, I'll be seen in Chapel Choir rather than College Chorus, but I'm glad it's happening my junior year. There's something nice about doing Vespers without all the television cameras and extra lights in Dimnent, and I'll get to enjoy that senior year. Hurray for perfect timing!

I need to check out Holland's restaurant scene more. Ben and I enjoyed a fantastic dinner at 8th Street Grille and it's only my first time there (I know, yikes). For all my Ludington readers, it's a LOT like the Jamesport Brewing Co. Go, for you will be filled. And time spent conversing with Ben is always enjoyable. Hearing the origins of how the Bible Studs were started was a real blessing, not to mention remarkable. I had no idea that I was helping continue something that had been on my friend's heart for so long. My prayer is that God will continue to be in the center of this group and that His glory would be our first objective.

Yes, it's been a blessed day, despite noisy clocks, rain, dead umbrellas (my second killed umbrella in a year!), and cold. Thanks God; I don't understand why You would love us when we always let you down, but I'm thankful that You choose to love us anyway.