A Long and Winding Road
When I was in third grade, pink was my favorite color, I could climb any tree in our yard and do 113 cartwheels in a row. (I have a certificate to attest to this last fact. *smile*) Oh, and I wanted to be a singer.
Around that time, I remember drawing a picture for some class about what I’d be doing in the year 2000. I drew myself wearing a pink (of course) sequin gown in front of a microphone. (I wish I could find the actual picture, but the mental picture is very clear.)
But somehow, I let myself forget ignore how important singing was to me. I got into junior high and Orchestra seemed like a better more practical choice. I didn’t pursue vocal study until I was in college (the first time). There, I spent four years singing and making music and helped form my first a cappella group.
I loved my musical experience at Cornell. I loved the music house — an entire 3-story house with a piano and music stand in every room. I loved the friends I made in my singing group and the easy, effortless way we came together and collaborated. The excitement, the enthusiasm. Happily, I sang those years away.
Upon graduating, I once again felt compelled to make practical choices. I was new to the Twin Cities and I needed a job. So I took a job that had nothing to do with music or singing (or anything I’d studied in college for that matter *wink*). One job led to the next and, in between, I squeezed in time (never enough) for singing.
…
About five years ago, my family went through some STUFF. Those experiences caused me to re-examine my priorities. They made me think about what made me happy and what I wanted to spend my time doing. How I wanted to interact with people and what kind of relationships I wanted to have.
They made me think about increasing the joy in my life.
Then while visiting McNally Smith during an open house, I stood in one of the studio performance rooms and felt something inside me ease and expand.
I’d found my way back to a long forgotten road.
…
So here I am, working to be a singer. And it’s hard.
And engaging and challenging and exciting. And joyful.
In other words, well worth the trip.
Enjoy the journey, and keep increasing the joy.
(Pink?! Sequins?? That is sooo not what I would expect.)
20 Jul 2009 at 8:18 pm
Hi Joanna,
Thanks for your encouragement and for taking time to comment.
As to the pink sequins … Well, you know they say blogging is all about transparency! *smile*
singingly,
sg
21 Jul 2009 at 10:57 am
I had a similar experience. I initially visited Music Tech in 1999, but stayed in Wisconsin to study graphic design. After a trip down another path I got the urge to look up the school again in 2005, shortly after it was changed to McNally Smith. When I visited then, I knew it was a direction I needed to to take. It was one of those things where I thought to myself, “This is something I could have gone through life not even knowing about.” Or not experiencing. I’m of course 27 now, which is old considering some of my fellow graduates are now 20. But as I get older, youth becomes less important. The music business I was aware of growing up looks like it’s on the verge of collapse. Likewise, being employed is no-longer the “safe” path. We might as well be doing the job we want, the way we want to do it.
In 5th grade I said that in 2007 I would be an architect. It seems so funny to me. Most people never realize their childhood dream, and here I am aiming higher. Actually, the truth is that I didn’t believe that I could do music back then.
I really think it’s so important that people just go and do what they really WANT to do. Not just what they think they CAN. I had a comfortable job, but was unfulfilled. So I told myself that I would rather fail than settle for boredom.
So here I am after graduating, no job, my loans are about to default, and I still know I’m in a better place than if I traveled down that other road. If you like music, there’s a good chance McNally has something to offer you. And my mom always told me that it’s a better investment than just a nice car.
Anyways, that’s the attitude that got us this far, so let’s keep going. People seem to focus on the employment rates of college graduates. It’s really not the same in music. I felt bad for a while about not having a lot going on, but my peers are all struggling too. Yet we all have minor prospects, which means there’s definitely something to go on.
24 Jul 2009 at 9:57 am
Hi Jacob,
I’m so glad you’re reading and shared so much of your own journey. (It’s not so scary if we talk about it, right? *smile*)
Meeting kindred spirits like you is one of the great gifts I received at McNally. The saying in my grandmother’s family was “You’ll never get a hunchback from carrying around an education.”
Here’s to fulfillment AND making a living doing what we love.
singingly,
sg
26 Jul 2009 at 11:48 pm
[…] example, when deciding to change my entire life by returning to school, it took me a long (long, long) time and a lot of steps to get […]
05 Oct 2009 at 12:50 am
[…] Well, we can miss opportunities for growth and learning if we’re comfortable all of the time. If everything’s good, then what makes us seek out new friends, move to new cities, or start new jobs? Why learn or write new songs or work with new players? (Why quit your day job and go to music school?) […]
16 Oct 2015 at 4:45 pm