Der Erlkönig

Anyone else familiar with this piece? Worth a listen, if you like outstanding piano music...

Piano Guys!!

For anyone who knows me, you probably already know that the Piano Guys are my favorite music band, hands down, no question. So I am sharing this on my blog as a vote for them to win a youtube award, just because.



And since you get hardly any of their amazing music in this video that has to be shared in order to vote for them, here is the real video with the amazing music which is the actual reason why I vote for them. Elizabeth and I saw this performed live in Buffalo when we went to the concert last week!! It is a combination of Faure's "Pavane" and David Guetta's "Titanium".

That's not even my favorite, though. I have not been able to choose an actual favorite, so here are a few of the ones I listen to most. [If anyone is not familiar with the Piano Guys, I highly recommend listening to these, or going to their youtube channel and watching anything.] All three of these were also played at the concert last week, and I can truly say that they are even more amazing to see in person! (How is that possible...)

 this is a mashup of the Bourne Identity soundtrack and the Vivaldi Double Cello Concerto

an African version of the Coldplay song "Paradise"--Peponi

and last in order of production but certainly not in awesomeness, the brand-new "Kung Fu Piano", which is a mixture of the soundtrack from Kung Fu Panda with Chopin-style piano and filmed on the Great Wall of China.

Hope you enjoy!! I am posting this as a vote for the youtube competition, but I suppose passing around some of the best music I know makes for a not-too-shabby blog post, too, and I am sorely lacking in those ;)

College Choir Tour 2012

As I prepared to go on tour, I knew that I would want to remember it. So, I decided to keep a journal as we went, since there would inevitably be things that I would forget otherwise. I have added some clarifications, since I wasn't always writing this to explain everything, but instead so I would remember the trip myself. Also, I have taken out most names for internet privacy reasons. Without further ado:

   1. 3/29/12, West Genessee High School, Fairmount, NY
Heard recital choir and chorale, both of which were quite unusually good for High School choirs (vowels, cutoffs, group discipline). Worked mostly on dynamics and phrasing.
   2. 3/29/12, Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, Fayetteville, NY
Small chapel, priest was super nice and said it was the best choir they had ever had, and we connected very strongly spiritually. Standing-room only, and very enthusiastic audience with a large Sacred Honor Choir. {Sacred Honor Choir was when we had high school students come up and sing with us on the last two pieces of the program; we did this at most of our concerts.} 1st time run-through of the Bach {Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied} in concert - and they gave us an excellent potluck dinner! {Most of the churches gave us dinner; we would come, set up, have dinner, then give a concert.} :)
   3. 3/29/12, Homestay
Truly lovely couple and a beautiful home. Stayed with 5 other girls. They gave us lemon cookies and tea, and we stayed up talking about a range of topics. He is a psych prof in Syracuse [taught a Houghton professor!], and she was an elementary music teacher. Their house looked more than a little like something out of a magazine - all so perfect, but so tastefully done and we felt very put at ease.
   4. 3/30/12, Troy Music Hall, Troy, NY
Stunning acoustics, full floor and two balconies, and side balconies (reminding me of the Royal Opera in London!) So easy to be too loud; Dr. J {Dr. Johnson, our conductor} kept telling us to be quiet! Had pizza for dinner with a very nice group of SHC kids (one girl had the craziest laugh, like a dying duck, which made the rest of us laugh and we had a good time). The audience was small, but seemed to enjoy the concert and we just had a lot of fun glorifying God in a place where it was so easy to make a good sound! Sometimes we would finish a piece (the dramatic/loud endings) and the sound would hang, shimmering, in the air. Awesome!
   5. 3/30/12, Stay Inn [Hotel], Troy, NY
Pretty nice hotel, and the beds were comfortable, (most important thing!). We got in around 9:45, and I finished off my paper, submitted it, and went to bed. Slept in, then continental breakfast,  quick nature walk on a path another girl and I found, and we were back on the bus!
   6. 3/31/12, King of Grace Church, Haverhill, MA
Diner was potluck again, delicious as usual, and they made a nice cake that said "Welcome Houghton Choir", so that was nice. We had devos and the guy doing them was sharing about how much music meant to him and how the concert pieces were so deeply moving. We were all sitting around very quietly when a little kid came running in, rather loudly (and graphically) proclaiming his success in the lav. It made everybody laugh. The concert went very well, with the audience clapping the whole time we were filing in and out. The space was nice, too, with a wide open stage although the piano was back behind the choir so we had to fool a bit with sight lines for the songs we do with piano. They were super appreciative, with whistles, yells, and standing at intermission as well as at the end :) The only nightmares: 1 ladies toilet in the whole building, and taking the robe boxes up narrow, twisty stairs to the attic that was the ladies' dressing room.
   7. 3/31/12, Homestay
Stayed in New Hampshire, since it was so close to the boarder. Along the way we passed the  church that sent out the first missionaries from America. That was neat! They gave us tea and popcorn and banana bread, and we saw their pellet stove, which was cool. The not-cool (well, cold) part was that as a result when we shut our door at night it was so cold! I woke up freezing, and my throat was so cold. I had some tea and toast for breakfast, and one of the girls loaned me her scarf and I took a shower. But regardless, after going to bed at midnight, getting up at 6 feeling miserable was not so fun. Chugging tea and cough drops, and off again.
   8. 4/1/12, Greater Framingham Community Church, Framingham, MA
We arrived at 9:30 or so, unloaded quickly, robed, and met the pastor. He informed us that we would be up front the entire service, and would follow his directions. Dr. J nodded, and it was so. We filed up in formation, (never having seen the sanctuary!), and went into rows of chairs on the stage (aka "choir loft" - it was most emphatically not a choir loft!). From the music playing we confirmed that it was a black Pentecostal church (or something along those lines). There was an electronic organ (think rollerskating sound, the man playing it was quite good!), an electric bass, and drum set. There was also a men's choir that was pretty much getting right into the music, and the pastor directed us to sing along, clap, sway back and forth (what we call the "choral shuffle"), etc. The service was an interesting mix of what I would call Baptist preaching, Pentecostal singing, and High Church (Anglican or Catholic communion and liturgy (confession of faith, Lord's prayer, Apostle's Creed, Gloria Patri). The did have a "welcome" like I hadn't seen before; all first-time visitors they asked to stand up and give name, where you're from, and religious affiliation (if any). Up on the stage, all 70 of us stood up, along with random people in the congregation (Houghton PR crew, some parents of choir people, etc.) They passed a microphone around and it took quite a long time. Then the pastor turned around and saw the choir standing there and just kind of laughed and skipped us. We sang a couple spirituals as a part of the service and even while we were singing the audience was standing up, singing along, clapping to the music, etc. It was good practice focusing on the conductor and staying together ^_^ After we finished, though, the pastor said 'Amen' a dozen or so times, then laughed and said "we saw those purple robes [our choir robes] and were wondering if you could actually sing. But you can sing!!!" That was nice =)
   9. 4/1/12, Concert at GFCC
We had lunch (bean chili, spaghetti, meatball sandwiches, over-sized sub sandwiches, cookies, cake, etc). It was quite good, and afterwards we had a few minutes of free time, then some quick formations/testing out the space, devos, (where the guy doing devos made some good Palm Sunday points on praise), and we were on! The concert went well; on account of the audience we only did the first section of the Bach, but all our spirituals, etc. The liked us a lot, and we got rave reviews after the concert.
   10. 4/1/12, Homestay
Stayed with a very nice lady and her just-16-year-old son; her husband was in Arizona with 17 other guys from the church, golfing for 4 days. Their house was jaw-droppingly posh, but they were super nice. We went out to dinner at a place called Legal's, where I ate (on recommendation) a cup of clam chowder and also grilled salmon. I'm quite certain it is the best fish I've ever had! But it's Boston; that is to be expected! :) Went to bed early, since we were exhausted. She is actually from the deep South, so for breakfast we had grits, eggs, bacon, and sausage - along with Greek yogurt, fruit, coffee, orange juice, etc. We dropped the boy off at his school, then were dropped off at the church. We were early, but just hung out at the church.
   11. 4/2/12, Boston Trinity Academy, Boston, MA
Day of utmost insanity! My voice was quite tired, so I talked as little as possible. Worked on my Arabic on the bus, and we stopped at a school along the way to sing. We got stuck in traffic getting into Boston and were running late, so Dr. J had us do our warm-ups on the bus. When we stopped, we were instructed to leave everything on the bus and run in. So we jogged/ran across the grass and into the school, where there was a 'relay' of teachers who took our coats/waterbottles and directed us. We kept running right into the auditorium with Dr. J telling us as we went what formation to get into on stage. It was apparent that instead of the usual masterclass, we would just be doing some singing. We filed right up onto the stage; the room was already full of students and as we started in, they started cheering and clapping. We sang Witness (one of our spirituals), then Ehre Sei Gott (in German), the latter half of Idumea (early American, and the stomps were lots of fun on the hollow wooden stage - plus, all the girls were wearing our flats, not slippers!), and Give Me Jesus. For the last, Dr. J invited the students who sang with us in Haverhill as a part of the SHC to come up, so they did and that was fun. Then the bell rang, the students all left quickly, and we were directed to the bathrooms and handed bottled water, then hustled back out onto the bus. Turnaround time? About half an hour :O
   12. 4/2/12, Calvary Baptist Church, Easton, PA
Lunch was a half-hour stop at some mall, the food court of which consisted of 7 options - one of which was closed, and three of which were Asian (and all were basically the same). I really just wanted tea, but couldn't find any, so got gingerale instead. Arrived at the church around 4 pm, so it had been a 7-hour or so drive that day. We were all pretty tired, but unloaded, and did some warmups/our standard figuring out of formations and testing the space. They fed us chicken, beans, boiled potatoes, salad, and amazing rolls! There also was a huge dessert table. Between prep and dinner we had a little time off: Quote of the day goes to Dr. J - "Okay, you can go now. For the next 7 minutes I won't manage every detail of your life." :D I thought the concert went decently, although the audience felt kind of meh. Coming after churches that so warmly welcomed and loved us it was a reminder that we need to always do our best, and that we're singing for God's glory, not so we can get appreciation from the audience. The awkward part was driving back with our hosts (who actually were perfectly nice, don't misunderstand!) and he went on a 5-minute exposition of the virtues of the auditorium, how it was specially built for music/sound, the floating clouds adjusted just so, etc. My roommate and I just kept mum, because it was by a long shot the worst place we have sung in to date for sound - kind of like shouting into a black hole. We couldn't hear anything, and the whole space felt dead. But like I said, our hosts were very friendly and we chatted for a bit, then headed off for some sleep.
   13. 4/3/12, Philadelphia, PA
Had my 21st birthday in Philly! Got back to the church early, so we hung out in the choir room, looked at their music, practiced the Bach melismas, told stories, and generally hung out in a very choir-ish fashion while waiting for everyone else to show up. Voice-being-tired is now more like I-have-a-cold; my voice doesn't hurt so much, but the whole coughing/sneezing/continually blowing my nose is not so fun! Anyway, we got to Philly, and the buses dropped us off for a few hours of free time. We walked around and looked at the Liberty Bell (from the outside), and wandered down South street. We had heard that a good place to get cheesesteaks down there was a place called "Jim's", so we found it and 16  of us crowded in line (it's a small place!). The guys working there were super friendly, and asked if we were on a field trip ... um .. haha? We told them we were with a college choir, at which they told us to sing something! We had a good mix of people, so we sang Witness, and they loved it. Then we got our cheesesteaks and went upstairs to eat. While we were eating my choir friends sang Happy Birthday, which was sweet of them :) Then we went exploring, bought ice cream, funnel cakes, and fresh-squeezed orangeade (not all of us buying each thing!), saw the tomb of the unknown soldier, posed for crazy pictures, and sat in the sun in a park. it was all rather fun, and we met up again with the buses and drove to the church.
   14. 4/3/12, Church of the Holy Trinity, Rittenhouse Square
The trick with the church was unloading; there was no parking and the buses had to simply stop on the street. We had been given orders on the way over, and when we stopped the crews jumped off, we yanked everything (luggage and concert equipment) off both buses, and they were off again within a minute or two. It was quite impressive, and we hustled everything inside so it would be off the street. Then we had the standard formations, set-up, dinner, robing, concert call, etc. By now I was blowing my nose a couple times a minute, and seriously considering sitting out of the concert. But I really didn't want to; it was one of those gorgeous old churches, and I had really been looking forward to that concert. So I just prayed that I wouldn't have to cough/sneeze/blow nose during that time and for the next hour and 35 minutes - the time from when we lined up for the concert until I got back to the dressing room - I was fine. Praise God! :)
   15. 4/3/12, Hampton Inn, Philadelphia, PA
I did crash. After pushing all day, I finally had to admit how absolutely awful I felt. Took some cold meds, had some tea, and tried not to focus on being miserable (which I think I failed at). To be truthful, I pulled the blankets over my head and cried. The girls I was staying with are wonderful and came to the rescue; hugs and kind words make a world of difference and I fell asleep. Woke up and fever had broken; I felt utterly wiped out, but on the mend and my head was clearer. had a shower and quick breakfast, then shoved everything back on the bus (the situation was the same as at the church, except the street was bigger!) and we were off again.
   16. 4/4/12, Hilltown Baptist Church, Chalfont, PA
Well, the "Hill" part makes perfect sense; I don't know where the "town" came from! We drove out of the city, down a highway, into a small town, then out of the town, into the country, then very rural country ... then pastures, woods, farms, a lake, one-lane roads, big hills, etc. until we were wondering if maybe we were lost (and by we I mean choir people, not the bus driver). however, we finally pulled up at a church which was actually pretty good-sized, and we unloaded with plenty of room (and grass!) all around. It was still morning, and we had a rehearsal to learn the music we'll be singing for a special Easter service. Then we went across the road to a arm/country store/sandwich place and got lunch, then more rehearsal. We ended up with some free time and were pretty much told not to talk, but to take a nap. I was really dragging, and did go outside in the grass for a nap. The concert was a bit sentimental; the last full concert of the trip [by which I mean Dr. J told us that we wouldn't be singing the Bach again] =( But it went well, and the acoustics were pretty good.
   17. 4/4/12, Homestay
We stayed with a retired couple who had been missionaries in the Philippines for 35 years. We heard a lot about their kids and grandkids, and they had us sign their guestbook. She was also a Houghton grad, and we talked about the changes that have taken place in the last 40-some years. They also asked us how they could pray for us. It was a wonderful homestay, and she dropped us off with time to spare at the church.
   18. 4/5/12, Hawthorne Christian Academy, NJ
We headed out for NYC, and on the way stopped at another school. Here we met with their choir, plus a homeschooled choir. After we sang and Dr. J did some masterclass work we had a quick snack, then did some more singing.
   19. 4/5/12, NYC
As we drove into NYC, Dr. J did some tour-guide/info talking. We arrived at Calvary Baptist Church/the Salisbury Hotel on 57th Street, Manhattan, and did another super fast unload onto the street and into the hotel. When we were settled in, one of my roommates and I headed off to Central Park. We wandered around and had snacks, then back to the hotel. We dressed up, then headed off for the Metropolitan Opera to see Verdi's "Macbeth". Afterwards, several of us walked down to see Times Square at night. It was quite stunning, and on the way back we stopped at a street vendor and got falafel. We also got stopped by a guy who declared how much he loved each of us and the whole world, and proceeded to rather awkwardly hug us before walking on. We got back and collapsed tiredly. :)
   20. 4/6/12, Day in NYC
We had call at 9:30 the next morning, to work on the Masagcali. While we were there we did our formation work, too, and Dr. J pushed our call time back so that we had pretty much all day off! By the time I got out of rehearsal it was a little after 11. Had lunch with two choir friends (pizza at a little Italian shop!), and we decided to wander up to the Metropolitan Museum of Art through Central Park with others. We looked around, and after awhile everyone except one other girl had gone back. We agreed to split up, since she wanted to see some Dutch masters and I was more interested in British and French. Ended up seeing somevery wonderful paintings and having a lovely time.
   21. 4/6/12, Calvery Baptist Church, NYC
I was on for helping with lights, so got back to the church around 4:15. We did set-up until dinner at 5:30, then dinner and a quick change, devos, and we were on! We hadn't really known what the Good Friday service would be like as far as structure, but it turns out that they pretty much wanted us to sing our concert and the pastor gave a pretty short, direct message that was very good. They loved us, and I found it to be a deeply meaningful service. Partly getting over my sickness and feeling human again, partly the significance of Good Friday, partly just knowing the material well and working well as a choir, partly a full house and engaged audience, but it rated as my favorite concert. (I can say that since it's our last concert, so I know for all of tour now.) The only real downside of the evening was having only me and one other guy on robe crew come to haul the robe boxes to the storage room. Plus, there were only two elevators for the entire hotel, and they were finicky and wouldn't come. So we and two other [nice, helpful, wonderful, kind] guys [who volunteered] from the choir carried all six boxes down 3 flights of stairs. It was very tiring!
   22. 4/7/12, St. Joseph's Cathedral, Hartford, CT
The next morning we were up early and off again! Heading out of Manhattan we hit 2 red lights just as we were leaving the hotel, but other than that we didn't get a singe one the whole way off the island! We made it from central Manhattan to the highway in about 5 minutes. I feel like that might be some kind of record! We arrived at the church without difficulty, and quickly hauled equipment in and were handed programs for Holy Saturday service, Easter concert, and Easter service - plus a packet of music, which were were informed we would be singing! *Blink* ... well, so in the next few hours we [kind of] learned everything we needed to sing for the 2-hour mass that night, an hour concert the next day, and another hour mass. [Note that we do not sing that whole time, that's just how long the services were.] We had a quick lunch somewhere in there, but otherwise rehearsal until 2 pm.
   23. 4/7/12, Hotel, Hilton/Garden Inn
We went to our hotel under quite strict orders to be quiet! Take a nap, read a book, etc. I took advantage of the free wifi to check emails, then watched youtube clips of college students doing standup comedy and tried not to laugh too loudly :)
   24. 4/7/12, Holy Saturday Mass, St. Joseph's
New experience as a part of college choir: sightreading music at a performance/having music during a performance! Since we sing all our concerts memorized, it was very strange to not be very familiar with all the music! As far as the service itself, it was at 8 pm although it was the service I would think of as being the midnight service - starting in darkness, reading the story of the crucifixion, then lighting candles, lights, bells, and finally "alleluia". [For anyone not familiar with non-protestant tradition, it should be noted that during the season of Lent {40 days before Easter} the word 'alleluia' is withheld from the service as a part of the anticipation for and rejoicing of Easter.]
  25. 4/7/12, back at the hotel
We left the church around 10:15 pm, and 4 of us decided to get pizza, since we hadn't had dinner. We ordered some to be delivered to the hotel, and it came around 11:45. In the meantime and while we were eating someone turned the TV on, so we were watching the cooking channel and commenting on the good or negative things we thought about the food people were making. Around 12:30 we wrapped it up, having had a couple more people come and help with the pizzas/comment on the cooking channel. The next morning breakfast was not included with the hotel stay, so I had the leftover piece of pizza for breakfast out on the patio and enjoyed the sunrise/early morning since it was a lovely one. Made coffee to go, and it was back on the bus again!
   26. 4/8/12, St. Joseph's, Easter morning
We had a concert at 10, then mass at 11. [And by 'we', I mean us as college choir, the cathedral choir and cathedral brass, Soli Deo Gloria orchestra, and the church organist. A note about the organist: he is from Argentina, and has his PhD or something in organ playing, basically his expression looked like 'let me have some fun improvising on a ~ 3,000 pipe organ for an Easter service - BANG!' He was phenomenal, and a treat both to watch and to listen to! :D] The mass was considerably shorter (only about an hour) since there weren't any baptisms or confirmations like there were Saturday. We packed up quickly, and a few of our organ people from HC who are in choir got to play the organ! The organist was also very nice, and after the service thanked us for coming and told us that it was the best Easter service he'd had in his 15 years as organist there!
   27. 4/8/12, Bus ride/home
So, we all got on the bus for the long drive from Hartford, CT, to Houghton, NY. The good part was being with friends, and we did have a lot of fun. However, when we saw the sign welcoming us to Houghton, there may or may not have been - okay, there was - some very excited cheering! We thanked Dave, our awesome bus driver, did a pretty much record-breaking unload (although not because we were holding up traffic, this time!) and headed of to crash after our adventure. Since the dorms don't open until Monday, I'm staying with one of my friends/fellow choir alto since she lives off campus and can get into her apartment.

Fine. SDG 


---------------


Well, there you have it! If you really did read the whole thing, I a) am very impressed with your fortitude, and b) hope you enjoyed it!

Here are a few things that didn't really fit anywhere else:

- "Your zeal to close the consonant borders on the humorous" - Dr. J
- Telling someone that 'you're the sparkle in my champaigne' is way funnier than it should be when everyone is overtired
- Cold meds + exhaustion + coffee = everything is much funnier than it actually is
- "Veggies prefer a short commute" - on the side of a truck, advertising local produce
- (regarding a cemetery) - "People are just dying to get in there" - anonymous
- "Oh, look. It's a big bell with a crack in it" - unnamed choir man, sounding like Riley on National Treasure and referring to the Liberty Bell
- "I could go for some Ecstasy right now. Quiet bus become the high bus" - choir man (also, this is totally in context!)
- "The penultimate bar, on beat 9, you get to go baaaahhhhh!!!" Dr. J
- For general information, the Bach motet we sang (memorized, of course) was 92 pages long :)
- choir tour was awesome and I would totally do it again and am so looking forward to next year!!!!!!!!!

Nearer, My God, To Thee

So ... this basically made me cry. So much emotion from such a beautiful instrument ...

Misty Edwards

Have to say, this is one of my favorite songs ever - I may have posted it before, I don't remember, but if I did it was a couple years ago and so I'll post it again!

Music!

As some of you likely know, I am currently on college choir tour. [Should you be interested in listening to the music we're singing, here are some good recordings: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3EF909B92D030E6C&feature=g-all-a {it's our playlist}.] However, the piece I want to share tonight is not choral music at all, but Canadian Brass. This rather amazing group came to Houghton just a couple weeks ago, and I love this recording so much!

I have been keeping records of the different places we're going and plan to post a bit about the trip when it's over, but for right now I won't spoil the adventure :p Enjoy the music!

He'll Hold You

More of those papers

Well, friends, it's that time in the semester when all my professors decide to simultaneously assign papers, and now it is my duty to write them. I am currently working on one with the topic question: "Was mid-seventeenth-century opinion in England justified in seeing Quakerism as threatening social revolution?". The other two I am processing in my mind are 1) theories on the Fall of Rome (was it the barbarians? did Christians destroy the social order? did Rome actually fall?) and 2) "Did the church Christianise society in the fourth century, or was it merely compromised by its alliance with the state?"

I am also done with 2/4 of our Christmas concerts for the year - Thursday night was the Student Performance at Houghton, yesterday was off to Rochester for a NYSSMA workshop in the morning, then concert in the evening (being gone for 15 hours makes for an exhausting day, just sayin'). Today my parents are coming out for the 'dinner and concert' - banquet here at Houghton, then concert - and tomorrow is the last performance, up in Buffalo. For now, I am trying to rest my voice, drink lots of liquids (tea by the liter is a wonderful thing ...), and get enough sleep. The result is that I am here in the library all day today, since that a) helps me not talk to people, and b) more sleeping means less time to work, which means that I have to be rather productive when I do work. That is not a bad thing, but it does mean that I should end this blog post and get back to my paper ;) If any of the titles sound interesting, then I can post the papers - just let me know!

Cheers - the sun is shining!

Wide Open

I've had a theme song this summer. Such a happening is not unusual in my life, but this one has been going on all summer. So, I thought I'd share it. It is the chorus from Jason Aldean's song "Wide Open".

---

"This may not be my town,
It'll do for now,
Til I can figure out,
Who I am,
Where I'm going",
She's slinging eggs and bacon,
With a college education
Just hanging out and waiting,
For a better plan,
She's okay not knowing,
She's young,
And the world's wide open.

---

That pretty much sums it up. I don't know the plans God has for me - but the plans are there. I don't know where I'm going in the world - but it's still wide open. I don't know what the future holds, but I know the One who does. I guess that's good for now.

Reflections ...

Okay, so I'm a reflective kind of person. This morning in chapel the speaker challenged us regarding what we are actually doing in our lives - am I saying that I have compassion for the poor and want to help when I somehow get over to Africa, or am I actually engaged in helping those around me? A few songs ...

"Only Jesus" (My Legacy) by Denver and the Mile High Orchestra. The MP4 can be found here; the lyrics are below.

What will they say
When my life is over
Will it fade into the past
What will remain
When my life is over
Is there something that will last
What will I Leave behind
To stand the test of time
I leave the one who’s worthy
Of My whole life

My legacy
All I will leave
Is Jesus, only Jesus
The world will see
Inside of me
Is Jesus, only Jesus
Lord, I long for you to be
My legacy

Live thru me
Forever and ever
Every moment, Everyday
So My Legacy
Forever and ever
Will never fade away
People are longing for
Something so much more
May my life testify your glory, Lord

They won’t remember my name
But they’ll know the God that saved me
My life may fade away
But they’ll know the truth that sets me free
So I will live today
For you alone to be
My life, my love, My legacy

My legacy
All I will leave
Is Jesus, only Jesus
The world will see
Inside of me
Is Jesus, only Jesus
Lord, I long for you to be
My legacy

My next song is called "Here I Am, Lord" - I think I've probably posted it before, since I love it so much, but we sang it in chapel to end the service. And I had been thinking about it earlier this morning anyway, so I'm going to give it to you again - hopefully the words will be a prayer and not just another song.

I, the Lord of sea and sky
I have heard my people cry
All who dwell in dark and sin
My hand will save.

I who made the stars and night
I will make the darkness bright
Who will bear my light to them
Whom shall I send?

Here I am Lord
Is it I Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night
I will go Lord
If you lead me
I will hold your people in my heart.

I the Lord of snow and rain
I have borne my people's pain
I have wept for love of them
They turn away.

I will break their hearts of stone
Fill their hearts with love alone
I will speak my word to them
Whom shall I send?

Here I am Lord
Is it I Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night
I will go Lord
If you lead me
I will hold your people in my heart.

I will hold your people in my heart...

I think also of the Keith Green song, "People Need the Lord".

Everyday they pass me by,
I can see it in their eyes.
Empty people filled with care,
Headed who knows where?

On they go through private pain,
Living fear to fear.
Laughter hides their silent cries,
Only Jesus hears.

People need the Lord, people need the Lord.
At the end of broken dreams, He's the open door.
People need the Lord, people need the Lord.
When will we realize, people need the Lord?

We are called to take His light
To a world where wrong seems right.
What could be too great a cost
For sharing Life with one who's lost?

Through His love our hearts can feel
All the grief they bear.
They must hear the Words of Life
Only we can share.

People need the Lord, people need the Lord
At the end of broken dreams, He's the open door.
People need the Lord, people need the Lord.
When will we realize that we must give our lives,
For peo-ple need the Lord.

People need the Lord.

How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

~ People need the Lord; what am I doing? What are you doing? ~

Wandering

This is a wonderful painting. The wanderer is looking out over the engaging vista of what might happen and the unknown areas to be explored. However, there is also the realization that the wanderer is not facing the viewer. We don't know if his eyes are closed, or if he is hesitating in fear on the brink of the precipice instead of feeling exhilaration at the challenge ahead. For all we know, he is looking at the past and we are standing in the future; he may be turning away from us, trying to make sense of his history, and having no interest in the future at all!

I chose this picture because that is how I am feeling right now. I am starting a new semester full of promise of classes I expect to love and an engaging, exciting time of learning in a community of friends. On the other hand, I am looking back with just a bit of bittersweet, because a year ago I was packing my suitcases to move to London for a semester. That was one of the most fantastic experiences of my life, and I cannot help but wish that I could be going back this year.

The following lyrics are from "The Wanderers" by Lacy J. Dalton. I cannot help but feel right now that this picture, these lyrics, and the way my life seems right now somehow coincide. Where, exactly, I'm not sure yet.

Across the trackless wastes of space and time
Down through the eons we have come
The living river that our spirits ride
A shining bridge from sun to sun

Beyond the broad expanses of the galaxies
The ancient heavens brightly burn
And spanning light years we have crossed the cosmic seas
Through countless lifetimes we’ve returned

We are The Wanderers
Traveling from star to distant star
Purposely forgetting
What we were and who we are
Becoming one of you – As we were destined to
To bring the light to you
We are The Wanderers

Traveling the endless universe
Awakening your magic with our music and our verse
We are The Wanderers

Down through unnumbered ages
Through currents vast and deep
First a whisper then a roaring
We come to wake you
From your sleep

From far beyond the reaches of the brightest stars
The sacred circle was begun
The living words we sing are part of what we are
In everything and everyone

We are The Wanderers
Traveling from star to distant star
Purposely forgetting
What we were and who we are
Becoming one of you – As we were destined to
To bring the light to you
We are The Wanderers

Traveling the endless universe
Awakening your magic with our music and our verse

We are The Wanderers

Sometimes I think that wandering is viewed as a bad thing - something that proves a lack of purpose, or something being wrong. That reminds me of one of my favourite 'wandering' quotes, by JRR Tolkien:

“All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost; the old that is strong does not wither, deep roots are not reached by the frost. From the ashes a fire shall be woken, a light from the shadows shall spring; renewed shall be blade that was broken, the crownless again shall be king.”

While the wandering is being done the end and/or the path cannot always be seen - like the wanderer looking out over a fog filled valley, or Sam and Frodo knowing that they must eventually come to Mount Doom but never having left the Shire before, much less traveled to Mordor. In the same way, I must go through life one step at a time: trusting God that I am making the right decisions, and that what I am doing is worthwhile and good. I can't always see the end - in fact, I rarely can. What I must do is trust God for my direction, then just go - and remember that wandering does not mean I am off the path. As the poet Robert Frost put it in his poem "The Road Not Taken",

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood
and sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
and looked down one as far as I could
to where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
and having perhaps the better claim
because it was grassy and wanted wear;
though as for that, the passing there
had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
in leaves no feet had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I --
I took the one less travelled by,
and that has made all the difference

This is a reminder to me that there is no reason to believe that the path God has laid out for me will be neatly blazed and easy to find, much less convenient to travel. One of my favorite wandering quotes is from the Bible, Hebrews 11:8-16:

"By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.

By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:

For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God...

These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.

And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned.

But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city."

Wander with confidence - while the path may not be worn and the destination shrouded with fog, we are not lost. We are on the way to our city.

We are wanderers.

2 days to break!

Today is a mixture of church, reading, homework, thanksgiving hall dinner, and the closing of the Houghton Weslyann Church's three week 24/7 prayer vigil. I'm having a nice, relaxing afternoon with blogging, doing some math to prepare for my test tomorrow, and listening to fiddle music with violin and cello. It has been a good day so far. I woke up this morning to one of the nicest feelings ever - not at all tired, and looking forward to the day! I am feeling more and more alive. :)

I am so excited about going home for break in 2 days! Talking on the phone to my family isn't the same as seeing them, and I almost never talk to my other friends on the phone so it will be great to see them, too! For now - I have 6 classes (including a test) and chapel before I can go home! Oh and yes - I also have a Prism rehearsal, prism being Houghton's Christmas gala. It's quite a big deal around here, but I've been enjoying listening to Christmas music. It's not bad stuff to have stuck in my head!

Hope your day has been restful and enjoyable!

Holidays

Today I walked into Philharmonia rehearsal and heard one of the players practicing their parts for the Christmas Prism production coming up the beginning of December. It made me feel like it was already winter, which is a very conflicting feeling for me. I love some things about winter, and at the same time I know that I will end up longing for days with more sunlight! But I do like Christmas music a lot, so I am happy that we are already rehearsing it.

To pull back to a more current holiday, today I worked as a waitress at a banquet here. It was the senior citizen thanksgiving dinner, and I worked with two other girls serving coffee and tea and clearing plates and being generally useful and helpful. It was so much fun. I felt like I was walking into a treasure house to walk into a room full of older people. They have had so many life experiences, and there is so much I could learn from them! Hopefully I'll be able to get to know some of them over the next four years, as they all live in the Houghton area.

This evening was the first annual Houghton Freshman Tradition and the Passing on of the Eagles Legend and the Scarves. Okay, so that long title is mainly a product of my imagination. What it is is the first annual scarf giveaway. Well, that's not quite accurate either. The story is that many years ago there were several Houghton students who were killed in a car crash. To make sure these students aren't forgotten, a tradition is being started that every year the freshman class hears about these students. Then, we all get a Houghton scarf with our class year. My scarf is purple and gold plaid and very long and warm. (So is everybody else's.) I like it a lot.

I also colored a picture of a turkey today, which was fun and relaxing. Sometimes I think that people suffer great losses when they force themselves to 'grow up'. What's wrong with having fun with pretty colors? Isn't that basically the definition of people who paint? So yes, I had a lot of fun and don't regret it at all! It was a good day.