Time To Say Good-bye

This past week has been really hard for me! I've been saying things like: "This is the last time I . . ." and what not. It's not a very good habit, but for some reason I can't stop it! I think about it all the time! Collegiate yesterday was the worst though! It started off beautifully! We had a lot of snacks and desserts and just sat around and talked to each other. Then there was a man who played the organ in Africa that Brother Kempton had met; we ended up Skyping him and singing a song for him (he was in Wyoming I believe). It was cool to watch his face as we sang to him, he loved it!

We continued to sit around and eat for quite some time. Then, about fifteen minutes before class was supposed to get out Brother Kempton asked for people to share their experience this semester in Collegiate; I didn't dare say anything, because I knew if I did I would start crying. We went until the last three minutes of class when Jessica brought up that it was her last semester. Brother Kempton had al the people who were leaving raise their hand; mine went up. I didn't start to cry, but I could feel the beginnings of it coming. I thought that that would be the worst of it . . . nah! Brother Kempton said that we would be singing "God Be With You 'Til We Meet Again". I couldn't help myself and exclaimed, "That's really rude!" Before we even started singing I began crying.

I felt happiness and sadness wash over me all at once; Collegiate has been such a wonderful experience for me! I've made such wonderful friends and I'm so grateful for the love and support I've received whilst I've been in the choir. I was sitting by my friend who was also graduating and we just cried together! It was definitely the hardest moment of my college career (that's right, juries didn't even compare)! After we sang I avoided saying good-bye to Brother Kempton; I just didn't want to. Eventually he got me! I'm so grateful for that man and for the wonderful atmosphere he helps create as the director! I started thinking of him as a father figure and I'm so grateful for his constant love and support to all in the choir! I don't think I could thank him enough for all he's done for me!

My semester has ended and I'm excited to begin the next chapter of my life as a BYU-Idaho Alumni and a music teacher! There are more adventures out there, and I'm going to keep growing. I've only made it about 250 miles out of the 1,000 . . . I've still got quite a bit to go! There's still so much to learn, so much to see, so much to do, and so much to be! Here's to the next chapter, cheers! :D

Patriot's and Pioneers: Gettysburg

I just finished my last performance at BYU-Idaho and I couldn't have asked for a better performance to go out with! We were remembering the Battle of Gettysburg and the Gettysburg Address. We had a guest, Edward Hermann, come and narrate parts of the program! It was absolutely amazing! The last half was my favorite! That was the portion of the program that focused around Gettysburg. We sang a long set that included:

• Battle Cry of Freedom arr. by Brother Kempton (this recording is only the Union, but Brother Kempton added the Dixie/Confederate in there as well)
• Tenting Tonight
• The Dying Soldier arr. by Brother Mack Wilberg
• Of the People, By the People, For the People written by Brother Brown (faculty from BYU-Idaho)

My favorite is 'The Dying Soldier'. I cry every single time we sing it! And yet all of these songs have a message of hope in them! As soon as Sister Solberg put her arms down, I broke! Tears started streaming down my face and I felt overwhelmed! The audience jumped up after we finished, there was a powerful spirit there! I was reminded by my Grandma Anderson that I'm related to General George Pickett from the Confederate's. He led the raid that is now called "Pickett's Charge". It was really cool for me to think about George and what he did.

After we sat down and watched people begin to trickle out I felt the overwhelming sense of finality. That was my last time singing in the BYU-Idaho Center; in fact, that was my last performance at BYU-Idaho. I felt deflated, and yet a great sense of accomplishment! I've had the opportunity to perform and share my testimony through song so many different times over the last five years. I'm grateful for this final chance I had to bare my testimony! I'm also grateful that this isn't the last time I get to share my testimony through song; I can do that every day! However, my time at BYU-I is drawing to an end, and it's really bitter-sweet for me. But, onto the next chapter of my life!