Whenever someone asks what I want to be when I grow up, I
like to say that I’ve always wanted to be a writer, that it was burned into my
brain since I was a little kid. But lately I’ve realized that that’s not
entirely true.
As a kid, I loved reading and writing short stories. My
imagination was infinite, so there was no end to the worlds I could create
inside my head and on the page. There was no doubt in my young mind that I
wanted to be a writer when I grew up. I wanted to write books like the ones I
loved to read.
In my late elementary and early middle school days, I still
wanted to write, but I developed a new hobby. I wanted to be a singer, a rock star,
just like Hannah Montana and the Jonas Brothers. I wanted to write songs that
made people feel inspired to follow their dreams just like I was. I began to
truly fall in love with music and everything it stood for and made me feel.
(There was a brief point in my life, sometime around when I
started show choir in middle school, when I wanted to be a dancer, but we don’t
need to talk about that.)
In high school, I was introduced to the journalism world and
considered that as a more “practical” career path than writer or rock star. I
took part in an internship with the Ralston Recorder, and while I enjoyed my
time there and learned a lot about myself as a result, I can’t say that I fell
in love with the profession.
Later on in my high school career, nearing graduation, I was
forced to decide where I wanted to attend college and what I wanted to study.
As an extremely indecisive person, this was an especially stressful time for
me. What did I want to do for the rest of my life? I sure as hell didn’t know.
So, I Googled potential career paths for people who enjoy writing. This is when
I decided that I wanted to be a copy editor at a book publishing company. I
know, it sounds exciting. Basically, I would read through manuscripts for
grammar, punctuation, spelling, sentence structure, etc. It’s something I’m
good at and even enjoy. That’s when I chose to attend UNO and major in creative
writing.
When I tell people I am a creative writing major and English
minor, I get asked the same question every time: are you going to teach? I’m
always offended by this question, not because I hate the idea of being a
teacher, but because I hate the assumption that the only thing to do with a
writing degree is teach. Strong writing skills are valued in so many
professions aside from teaching.
As I think about my college graduation a year from now, I
can’t help but look back on the question: what do I want to be when I grow up? I
still want to write, I still want to make music, and I still want to edit
manuscripts. But as of the past week, I’ve been considering something I never
would have imagined myself doing.
On Wednesday, May 17th, 2017, I got the news that
my high school band director, Marty Frye, had very suddenly passed away. I didn’t
realize how much of an impact he had had on me until he was gone. I’ll spare
the waterworks because that’s not what this blog post is about. As I pondered
the profound impact Mr. Frye had on my education, love for music, and confidence
in my abilities, I became overwhelmed with the desire to have that kind of
impact on someone’s life.
So now, as I sit here writing this, I can honestly say that
my dream has changed once again. Surprisingly to me but perhaps not for
everyone else, I am considering being a music educator. I still plan to graduate
next spring, but I don’t want my learning to stop there. Perhaps, sometime down
the road, I will return to school and get another degree in music education. Life
is short, so I want to make the most out of my time in this world and impact as
many lives as I can along the way, just as my music teachers have done for me
over the years. I believe in the power of education, and more importantly, I
believe in the power of music.
“Music, once admitted to the soul, becomes a sort of spirit,
and never dies.” -Edward Bulwer-Lytton
