Seeds of Change.

Now on to the more interesting somethings. Finally!

This last weekend was probably one of the greatest of my entire existence. Okay that might be drastic, but at least of my sophomore year of college, so it's still up there pretty high. This weekend I went on  a retreat; which retreat, you may ask? Why, it was the 2012 Seattle University Chapel Choir Retreat! Each year at around the same time, the Chapel Choir holds a retreat for all of its members at varying locations. This year's (and actually last year's too) was held at Camp Burton, which is located on Vashon Island, WA. (I think the year before last was on like Bainbridge Island or something, but I'm not really sure). Anyway, the theme was "Seeds of Change," hence the title of this post, meaning the retreat was all about change, preparing for it, reflecting on it, and celebrating it. Essentially, learning how to become a better person, and how to help others to become other people, because of change. It was amazing, literally amazing. I really can't think of another word appropriate enough to describe just how amazing it was. And I will even admit, I had really high expectations for this weekend, as last year's retreat was one of the greatest weekends of my freshman year; but they were totally exceeded. From the moment we left school at 5pm on Friday until the time we returned yesterday at 8:30pm, I was on a complete Chapel Choir high.

I first joined Chapel Choir in October of 2010, so fall quarter of my freshman year. I am not, nor have I ever been Catholic, so needless to say making the decision to join a choir that sings for the Sunday morning (and evening) Masses in the University Chapel was an interesting one. I really belong to the Church of Christ, (as that was the church I was baptized into and attend when I'm at home in Eugene), but when moving up to Seattle I had a hard time both finding a church, and then when I did, figuring out how to get there every Sunday morning. It was a little tough at the beginning, having to accept that I might not be able to attend church while at school, simply because of transportation issues and what not, but eventually, that toughness lessened - thus was the time when I first heard of Chapel Choir. I decided to go ahead and audition because hey, if I couldn't find my own church then why not use my talents to help others worship in their own way? So I did. I auditioned for our director Bill, (by singing The Beatles "I Wanna Hold Your Hand") and by the next Sunday morning, I was singing at Mass. I still remember that first morning I attended. Honestly, it was the strangest thing I had ever witnessed. Not really strange in a bad way, but strange in that I had never experienced worshiping God in such a way. No one had out their Bibles, we sang with instrumental accompaniment rather than a cappella (like in the Church of Christ), and there was a lot of reciting, like of the Lord's Prayer and the Nicene Creed, etc. And then when the time came to take communion, I felt as though I was almost forced into it, since you know, in the Catholic church, you go up in a line to receive communion, not sit and wait for it to come around on a plate, as I was used to. Experiencing Mass definitely took some getting used to on my part, but the singing was wonderful. The hymns, and just the way people would get into the music, it was intoxicating. By the second week, I was hooked.

Now, onto the retreat. Since I've already posted a lot on the meaningfulness behind it on both Facebook and Tumblr, I don't really think I'm going to on here. I mean I will, but I'm not going to go into as great of detail, so as not to bore you all to tears. And for some reason, I am really not in the blogging mood right now. I started writing this post yesterday (Sunday), and then just left it open to finish tonight, but for some reason I just cannot get into it, and I kind of feel like everything I'm writing right now is just like asdfdfghjklhzcng. But maybe I'm just tired. Hmm...Anyway, list.

Friday
1. Arrived at Camp Burton at around 7pm (and yes, to get to Vashon Island, you have to take a ferry. For those of you who have ever been to Seattle, you would know that it is in fact surrounded by water on three sides, thus there are ferry boats that take you out to pretty much all of the surrounding islands like Vashon, Bainbridge, etc. etc.).
2. Ate dinner, which was actually quite good and normal food-wise. There was only one item that sparked my suspicion and that I, after some deep thought, refused to try, and that was rice wrapped in a grape leaf. Okay first of all, what the hell is a grape leaf? Yeah, I don't know either.

3. Ice-breaker activity. This one consisted of all 20 of us sitting in a large circle, and one at a time choosing a number at random out of a bag. Each number corresponded with a question (one that reflected on ourselves and our character), and then once we answered it, we had to pick one other person in the circle to answer as well. Needless to say there were a lot of things about people that I didn't know...

Random group hug!

4. Group singing! I love Catholic Mass Hymns so much. They're just so beautiful and passionate and loving. Just like all of the people I get to sing them with.

L to R: Catherine, Daniella, Shelley, Ali

L to R: Ellise, Marty, Micaela, Dan, Becca

My favorite hymn.

4. Taize (tih-seh; yeah, I learned how to pronounce this the hard way) prayer service. It is seriously the most relaxing and amazing thing ever. Every year during Lent, the Seattle University Chapel provides these prayer services every Tuesday night, and they're just...ahhh. Typically during these services you sing hymns, but they're a little different from your normal Mass music; they're more relaxing and repetitive. Not really chanting, but just a different feel I guess. What we did was gather in one of the retreat rooms, light some soft candles and dim the lights, and then sing for about 30-45 mins; I think I only sang for about 15, not only because I was sick pretty much the entirety of last week and sounded like some sort of diseased wild animal, but because I was just so entranced and aflksdglfndlkhng.

5. Free time! aka. Games! aka. Scattergories! I pretty much spent this portion of the evening playing Scattergories with 10 other people. Keep in mind that by the time we even started playing the game, it was around 10pm, so basically the later it got, the more intense it got. And for those of you who don't know how to play, I will explain. First, you roll the large dice that holds each letter of the alphabet on it. Whichever letter the dice lands on is the letter you use for that round. Then, you gather your piece of scratch paper, and your list. The list comes with the game and has 11 different topics on it. For example, one topic would say "something you find in a house," and another could say "a reason for skipping school." With the letter you're supposed to use for the round, you have to list one thing that could work under each topic on the list that starts with said letter. And you can't show anyone your answers. If, at the end of the round, you and another person accidentally share the same answer, you can't get a point for that answer; you can only get a point if you are the only person with that answer. The person with the most points at the end wins. Oh, and while you're filling out the list you're timed (about a minute or two), so there's pressure, which is usually what screws people up in the long run. But it's funnnn! We played three rounds, and then once that was done I decided to wind down with coloring a picture (yes, from a Disney-themed coloring book) of the lovely Lady and the Tramp. 

6. Bedtime. After heading back up to the dorms and having girly chats with pretty much all of the women in the choir, my roommates and I decided it was time for bed. And speaking of these roommates, they're the best ever, even if we were only together for one night. They entertain me.

L to R: Anh, Me, Hana

Saturday

1. Wake up call: 7:30. Oy. And just to throw this out there, my wake up call consisted not of an alarm clock, but of Anh squealing like a deranged hamster after seeing Hana hovering near her bed for a total of one second. Good times.

2. Yoga. Sort of.

3. Breakfast! The Camp Burton dining hall served amazingggggg food. That is all.

4. The first of three small group reflections: Preparation for Change. Not going to lie, these small group talks were hard, yet incredibly refreshing. What we did was start of as a big group, listening to one choir member speak of their experience in "preparing for change," how they prepared for it, how it effected them, did they think they were ready, did they learn from it, etc. Then we split off into small groups of five or six people, and then we each spoke of our own experiences. Hence the hard part. I think it's fair to say that I was not the only one who decided to make myself emotionally vulnerable and open up to people about my life, but again it was refreshing. So many brave people, so many brave stories. My story: The remarriage.

5. The second of the small group reflections: Reflection on Change. Repeat part 4, except speak of a time where you went through a change that required much personal reflection, and/or religious reflection. My story: The current applications.

6. Lunchtime = baked potatoes + my taste buds.

L to R: Ali, Shelley, Anh, Hana, Becca, Michael

7. Free time! aka. Disney music, love letters, coffee, coloring, the beach, friends, and yogurt-covered raisins.

L to R: AnneMarie, Matthew, Anh, Hana

L to R: Melissa, Daniella, Marty, Catherine

L to R: Michael, Philip, Matthew, AnneMarie

Hana

L to R: Anh, Hana

So beautiful

Canoes!

8. The third (and last) of the small group reflections. The topic: celebration of change. Holy mother the stories told during this reflection time were so profound, and just so, beautiful. Honestly I really cannot think of another way to describe them. We decided to have this reflection as a whole rather than in small groups, which I was glad about; it was nice to be around everyone, and to feel all the love everyone had to give. Becca in particular told a very meaningful story, and I will not repeat it on here, but let me just tell you it had just about everyone in tears. And Becca if you ever read this, I just want you to know that I think you're one of the strongest most amazing people I have ever met. My story for this talk: An old relationship brought to life again (after about 7-8 years) all from a simple phone call.

9. Liturgy service. The last thing before dinner. We all sat in one of the retreat rooms and sang hymns, exchanged prayers for one another, and read scriptures.

10. Dinnertime. They had these really interesting like, peanut-noodle things. Yeah, they were peanut-noodles - basically plain noodles in a peanut sauce. Quite tasty if I do say so myself.

11. Despite the many pleas, time to go back to school.

So basically, I will forever love this choir, this retreat, and being a Christian (or in this case, fake-Catholic. Ha). Now I'm about to get all mushy here, so if you're not really into religion, or you roll your eyes at it, then I discourage you from reading any further. No need to shove my religion down other people's throats.

God has brought so many amazing and wonderful people and experiences into my life, and for that I could not be more grateful to Him. Ever since I first began going to church and then was baptized into Christ, I have never felt anything less than protected and loved by a greater Being. I believe that there is a God who loves, protects, and provides for all people who choose to believe in Him; and that through Him all things are possible. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." - Philippians 4:13.

~Erin

Idiosyncrasies.

So here is this self-reflective personal essay I have been working on. I will be submitting it for an application very soon, and I actually think it's at least somewhat half good...I think. Well, it's interesting to say the least; I have never in all my years come across an admissions question as bizarre as this one, but dare to be different, right? Ha. Okay. Here's my essay/prompt.

Identify and describe a personal habit or idiosyncrasy - of any nature - that helps define you.


Out of the numerous idiosyncrasies that shape me to be who I am today, I believe the most prominent is my craving of adventure. Having grown up in the beautiful yet somewhat isolated state of Oregon, and not having traveled much as a child, I now search for independence, innovation, and the inexperienced in every opportunity I am presented with. My first true investigation of the inexperienced came when I was 16 years old, when I decided to leave the United States for an educational tour of France. While on the tour, I observed hundreds of artistic creations and landmarks from all eras; however, for me the true adventure came when, for the first time, I was able to break out of the shell of what was familiar. I was able to witness firsthand the different ways in which people led their lives, both in the large city of Paris, and in small southern towns or countryside. Also, by viewing the aforementioned artistic creations and landmarks, I was able to broaden my knowledge by learning the way in which the French interpret the world's cultures and histories.


Later, at the age of 18 when I began taking my first steps into adulthood, I decided to visit a good friend in the city of Boston, unaccompanied. Having never traveled to the northeastern corner of the United States before, I decided to take full advantage of the six days I was given and experience as much as I could. With my future in mind I took a tour of the Boston College Law School, as well as of historical landmarks such as Nathaniel Hawthorne's House of Seven Gables and the Salem Witch Museum. Then, when it was finally time for me to find summer employment after my first year of college, I decided to step out of my comfort zone a little further and apply for a position to work in Yellowstone National Park. For almost three months I lived on my own in northern Wyoming, determined to embrace as best I could the different life style that living in a quiet and mountainous region, as opposed to a large city, had to offer.


A few years ago, someone very dear to my heart once told me to "do one thing that scares you each day;" such is my interpretation of "adventurous." I believe that life is precious and, as it is only lived once, I try to honor that belief by both challenging myself and stepping out of my comfort zone with open-mindedness and gratitude. I make courageous yet intelligent decisions, enjoy all the possibilities life has to offer, and try to never take anything or anyone for granted.


Oy. You know what no; I really hate admissions essays. I will have more interesting somethings to post about tomorrow, rather than essays that reflect how un-original I actually am. Nighty night all.

~Erin

Gratituesday number four: Choir. Voice. Expression.

Hello jolly people. Wow has it really been a week since I last blogged? Holy crap...does time fly or what? Anywho, once again it is Tuesday! Which can only mean one thing.

This Tuesday I am grateful for the Seattle University Choirs, and pretty much just singing in general. I really don't think my college experience would have felt right without the countless hours spent standing on risers, constantly memorizing and nitpicking at every small detail of a song. Actually, I have no idea what a college experience without choir would be like, as I have been involved with both Seattle University (co-ed) Chorale and Women's Chorale since fall quarter of my freshman year, which was like, a year and a half ago. And we're back to the whole "time flies" concept. Compared to probably a lot of other students who spend half their life devoted to music education, I developed a passion for it very late in life, late as in my sophomore year of high school. And I will just be honest right now and say that the only reason I joined choir then was because I needed a Fine Arts credit in order to get into UCLA (and I didn't even end up going there...lol at the irony), and I couldn't draw worth a damn, so singing it was. I didn't even really expect to develop any sort of passion, at the time I was just thinking get in, get out, get your Fine Arts credit, be done with it. But music didn't get rid of me that easily, over time I became hopelessly hooked. Although come to think of it, that year was so bad that I think I was just desperately trying to reach out to something, anything, to make me feel whole again; lucky for me, that something ended up being the thing that I can no longer imagine my life without.

My first experience with choir came, again, my sophomore year of high school, with the Sheldon High School Concert Choir. It was a non-audition group that welcomed anyone and everyone willing and wanting to try something new, which at the time was me. Up until joining said choir I had devoted almost the entirety of my life to sports; first basketball, then soccer, then softball, then finally volleyball, because that's just what you did. You played sports because it was the "normal" thing to do, and time and time again I told myself that it was the right thing for me to be doing. Not to knock sports or anything - I've just never really been a fan of exercising or like, waking up at 5am to go play in days-long tournaments 100 miles away. So needless to say, becoming a part of a group who wanted nothing more out of life than to be an artist, and to express themselves through their voices, well it was a little new to me. I expected to just show up and pass with flying colors, I mean after all, how hard could singing really be, right? Wrong. I had a lot of work to do. After spending the entire second half of my sophomore year with the Concert Choir, saying I became "hopelessly hooked" actually became an understatement. The 80 minutes a day I would spend with that group became my medicine; it could pull me out of the greatest despair imaginable for me at the time. I still remember almost all of the laughs we had, and all of the friends I made. We were so much like a little family it was crazy. And now I'm all nostalgic and aflsdflkngfkl. Next paragraph.

Eventually during the middle of that semester spent in Concert Choir, I began taking voice lessons with one of the greatest most amazing women I know, Linda. I did so because my little somewhat immature 15-year-old self wanted to be like all of those other girls, all of those girls who had been training their entire lives just to shine on that stage. Little did I know (yeah yeah cliche verse I know) that "voice lessons" would actually come to mean so much more than that to me. I cannot even find adequate words to describe how much both the lessons, as well as Linda, have helped me both vocally and in shaping me to be the person I am today. She taught me not only vocal technique, but vocal expression, as well as love, strength, and wisdom. She never judged, never made me feel bad about myself or like I wasn't good enough. I mean there was constructive criticism sure, we all need that, but never was there anything that made me feel inadequate.

I ended up taking lessons full time with Linda for about a year and a half, and since then we have never really lost touch. And for those of you who are super curious, I actually worked for her last winter break, so there's that too. Anyway, over time I actually came to realize that there was no one else I could really trust as much as I did Linda. I eventually was able to fully open myself up to her and tell her about my past, my troubles, and anything that could be bothering me that particular day. One afternoon I remember particularly well; it was about two and a half-ish years ago, right at the end of my junior year of high school, and it was the afternoon of the last formal lesson I was to take with Linda (so the end of my full time lessons). I hadn't told her until that afternoon that that was for sure going to be the last lesson I took with her for awhile, and naturally I was nervous. I didn't really want to stop, but in the end my mom and I had come to the conclusion that I was at the place I wanted to be with my music; I had reached the level of choir I wished to reach in high school, I was embarking on my senior year (meaning I would be up to my ears in homework and busy-ness), and it was just time I guess. So I went into Linda's office at the time of my appointment and took a minute, then told her. And she was okay with it, very understanding and whatnot. But then she asked me what I wanted to do with the hour we still had to kill - did I want to work on some music or just hang out and talk? Against my better judgement at the time, I decided to talk.

Now, at this moment in time, I had my best friends. I had people to talk to who were there for me and who would laugh with me and love me regardless. However, these were my very bubbly, hyperactive, lovable best friends, not my let's-talk-about-stuff-that-makes-me-want-to-rip-my-heart-out best friends...we didn't really talk about serious stuff all that much. So when talking to Linda, we just kind of got to talking at first about things like life and how much I had grown as a person and whatnot, and then suddenly, I decided to spill out to her my entire life's story. About my parents, past experiences with friends, etc etc. Thus led to my decision of allowing myself be emotionally vulnerable, and just cry. And cry and cry and cry. And she sat with me, rubbed my back and told me everything was going to be okay. That I was okay, that I would find a good place, and that I would move forward, learn, and grow into a better person. Up until that little emotional outburst (and still to this day), the number of people in my life who I had allowed to see and/or hear me cry I could count with one hand (and half of those fingers could probably be counted as accidental outbursts that I later regretted), so to willingly allow myself to do so in front of someone who I respected, but still a "stranger" nonetheless, was a big deal. I don't know, I guess crying in public was just never something I deemed socially appropriate. I think part of that can be due to my upbringing however; when I was a little girl and my parents were divorced (and that's another story for another post...I promise I won't put it off forever, someday something will trigger it), I would cry myself to sleep countless nights because of how much I missed my mom when I was away from her, because I believed that people would feel hurt were I to cry about her in front of them. So I would always hold it in because that was the polite thing to do. Anyway, getting off topic. Having Linda in my life, especially after that one afternoon, has helped me so much, not just musically but personally. And without music, I would never of found that.

Now back to choir! For both my junior and senior years, I decided to leave the smaller Concert Choir and audition for Varsity. So I did, and participated in it for two years. Again, one of the best decisions I could have made. My junior year, thanks to a very talented director and group of young people, the Sheldon High School Varsity Choir was asked to go to Washington D.C. and sing at the 2009 Inaugural Festival.

One of the most amazing experiences of my life, and we won first place. I even got to see this:

Obama getting officially sworn in as president (over the big screen of course) at the January 2009 Inauguration. Again, amazing. Looking back now, I can definitely say that being involved in Sheldon choir the last two and a half years of high school saved me. It introduced me to a passion within me I had no idea existed. Also to the fact that singing in a higher range (aka. Soprano I) is not my forte. Haha...get it, forte? Like forte as in music...? Never mind. I like puns. And thus, I am a perfectly happy Alto I. In Varsity in particular, we got to sing a plethora of genres of music, ranging from anything (and I mean anything) Eric Whitacre, to songs that required us to literally make jungle and/or animal noises. It was great. Of course I need to mention our director, Nancy, as well. Here's another musical talent and leader who, were it not for her and her enthusiasm, I would not be where I am today. Every time now in Seattle University Chorale when we get introduced to a "new" Eric Whitacre song, all I can think is, "I've heard this before, and I can do this." Nancy taught me not only that in order to be my very best, I need to practice my very best, but also how to be a completely selfless human being. Here was someone who constantly put aside herself to make sure that we were the very best, and were given the very best opportunities. Exhibit A being the trip to Washington D.C., and then of course the trips the Jazz choir took to Disneyland, and the group trips to Ireland, etc etc. Both her and Linda proved to me that through music you were not only given the greatest opportunities, but were able to meet some of the greatest people along the way.

So as you can probably conclude, once I got to college, I really could not imagine my life without choir. It got to that point where simply not singing was no longer an option for my life. I had to sing. I needed to sing. Such was the prelude to my meeting Doc. Dr. Joy Sherman, director of the Seattle University Choirs, is another musical great who I can honestly say has shaped and matured my voice more than any other person ever has. She emphasized not only expression, but technique, form, breath and balance. She is a genius. A complete genius. You know, my first ever meeting with her was actually somewhat humorous because what I believed to be just a "meeting," turned into a full on audition, without my knowledge and/or real preparation. Yeah, you can probably imagine how that went. It was a couple of days before my first day of school as a freshman (in September 2010), and she had called me (because at the freshman summer orientation I had left my number on a form saying I was interested in choir) and asked if I wanted to "meet" with her. I repeat meet, not audition. Naturally I said yes. So when I showed up at her office door the next day, she greeted me with a smile, asked me a few questions, and then right off the bat asked "so do you want to sing a few chords for me??" What I was thinking: "UMM NO. YOU CALLED ME IN HERE FOR A TALK NOT AN AUDITION I HAVE NOTHING PREPARED AND I HAVEN'T SANG SINCE LAST JUNE WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON WHAT AM I GOING TO DO?? AAAAAAHHHHHHHSFLNGDNFBGD." What I said out loud: "Umm yeah sure, definitely." What ended up happening: Me placing in both Women's Chorale and (co-ed) University Chorale. (Univ. Chorale is essentially a "step up;" if you're in that then you have to either do Women's or Men's Chorale too, depending on your gender). So everything ended up okay after all. Now, having spent almost two full years in both choirs, I can feel the change in my voice, and I appreciate the art that is music more than ever. We rehearse five days a week for at least an hour, and boy does it pay off. Thanks to Doc and her ruthless attempts to get me to "hook up and push the rib cage out," "lift my cheeks," and "utilize the hot-potato mouth," I now possess a strong vibrato and can hold notes up to around 12 seconds. It's always fun when she picks you out at random from the group and makes you sing parts of songs as well. Embarrassing at the beginning, educational at the end; that's the motto I've established for situations like those. We sing three and a half concerts each year, and I say half because in the middle of fall quarter (October) we always hold a "Parent's Weekend Concert," which promotes some of the pieces we will sing in the Christmas Concert in December. It sometimes feels like a lot more, but in the end I know all of the work is worth it, because we are stellar. And I say that without fear of bragging. I am proud to be in Seattle University Choirs; it is my passion, my stress-reliever (and causer sometimes...), and best form of entertainment.

And for your listening pleasure, here's a link to the online preview of some songs that are on our three most recent CDs (from the 2010-2011 concert year): 

http://www.seattleu.edu/artsci/finearts/music/Default.aspx?id=79725

I highly recommend you go listen. Then go buy the CDs. Because music is good, and I like it.

~Erin

P.S. I feel like I should just start making these "Grati-Wednesdays" because I never seem to be able to finish on Tuesdays anymore. Hmph. Oh well, I will do better next week, I promise. But it doesn't really help that I do my best writing between midnight and 2am, and naturally that's Wednesday. Well I could just write these at midnight Tuesday morning (so like Monday night kind of if that makes sense), but that would just be too simple...

Gratituesday number three: Les amis!

Pour les personnes qui ne parlent pas le français: Les amis = Friends


This Tuesday (and soon to be Wednesday, so forgive me if this gets posted shortly after midnight...) I am particularly grateful for the amazing friends I have in my life. For those people who know me better than probably anyone else, and for those who accept me for exactly who I am. I think this school year in particular, I have really been able to figure out who my true friends are, and honestly that is one of the greatest feelings in the world.

Growing up, I never really had that set group of "best friends" until I reached my junior year of high school. I don't ever really look back on that and feel like I missed out, rather I look back and wish that I had had the group I found my junior year for a lot longer than I did. Until I met you guys - Bre, Claryn, Jana, Alicia, Jenness, Margaret and Haley - I never really knew what it was like to have a "family," and by that I mean like a family outside of my family. Once I finally got to know that feeling, I never wanted to let it go. All of the sleepovers, the weekend outings, New Year's celebrations, the times in class where we would talk to one another instead of pay attention, Cabo Sanbrera, the trip to Disneyland, etc etc etc., those are memories I wouldn't exchange for anything. And then of course there are the memories from before junior year, like middle school and freshman year with Cammisha (remember your 15th birthday party, and the sleepovers during thunderstorms, and oh man, the journals?!), and sophomore year with Isabel (remember how pretty much everything you said made me laugh my entire face off, and French class, and les cheez-its de Jasmina?!). And then my first best friends from when I was little, who I still get to talk to, Alexis and ...also Alexis. No joke. One being my neighbor/kindergarten classmate, and the other my friend from summer camp. Just thinking about all of these things right now really makes me so grateful that I had, and still have you all in my life; and it also makes me wonder who on Earth I would be today without you.

And now, not only do I have you people to be grateful for, but I have my very colorful group of college friends as well. First and foremost, my roommates, Arielle and Lauren. Honestly I really don't know where I'd be without the two of you; you put up with me both when I'm at my best and my worst, you listen to me when I babble on about the most meaningless shit, and you're there for me when I really need you the most. I knew the moment I came home that one night last fall after a choir concert and fell onto my bed sobbing, when you two were immediately by my side trying to make me feel better, I was a lucky girl. I am so blessed to be living with two of the kindest, funniest, craziest (weirdest) souls in the world. And then of course where would we be without the rest of our group of misfits (as Lauren and I like to say) - Andre, Nick, Joe and Shelby? You guys are seriously the greatest, and I don't think I have ever been more comfortable around a group of people since high school. I love everything we do together, from the late night outings, to eating dinner together every week, to our insane (and what-the-fuck?) conversations, to the fact that I don't need to contact you first in order to know that you're there for me. You're always there to ask me are you okay? and that means more to me than you'll ever know. But, just so you know, I am only just a little bit glad that I won't be around next year to witness the clusterfuck that will be the six of you all living together in a three-bedroom, one-bathroom house. You're on your own there. Ha.

There are many, many other people who I could write about on here too. Like you, Nichole, who I've actually already written about like a month or so ago. Even though we don't get to see one another as often as we'd like anymore, I am still grateful to call you my friend. I think I have probably told you more than a lot of other people, because I know you're always there to listen, and I'm comfortable around you. Also, who else can I squeal over Harry Potter with, or show pictures and Tumblrs of Daniel Radcliffe to? And then there are your roommates, who hopefully will read this too, and Alie, Jaimie, Kendra and Haya; I remember spending countless hours in Nichole and Kelsey's room or in the Bell 5 lounge last year just hanging out, the late night walks taking pictures downtown, and the trip(s) to Neighbors, honestly I think those are some of my best memories too (along with pretty much everything Bell 5 related). Oh, and watching Kate's video recording of Shane jumping out of Nichole's closet is pretty high up on the list too...Speaking of which, Kate if you ever need a German studying buddy, I really should be keeping up on the language...And then I can't forget the choir buddies, Ashley and Margaret. You two make seven-day-a-week rehearsals at least somewhat bearable.

Finally last but not least, the rather large group of people I spent (and still spend actually) quality time with freshman year: Art (thanks for the PHIL 220 books by the way, you should be happy to know that they are intensely marked up and highlighted with notes in the margins...), Marina, Jackie, Micha, Haider, Hassan, Scott, Kelli, and Becca (granted, Arielle, Joe, Nick and Andre were a part of this group too, but I already mentioned them so whatever. haha). I think my favorite memories with you guys are probably one: Quadstock, two: birthday dinner(s), but particularly the one involving The Cheesecake Factory, and three: screaming my head off whilst watching Insidious in Art and Haider's dark room. Y'all (as Kelli would say...sigh, Eastern Oregonians...just kidding ;) ) made last year probably one of the greatest I could ask for.

Anyway, now that I have exhausted as many memories as I can think of in one night, (and goddamnit it's already 12:50am Wednesday morning...so much for Gratituesday...gah), I just want to say, thanks you guys, for making my life what it is. Without you I would be...lonely. Very, very lonely. And sad. And wondering what I would do with myself. And really, none of those things are good. And I am sure there are people here who I have neglected to mention, but I swear I didn't do it on purpose! Regardless of whose name is listed in here, you all are amazing.

Je suis qui je suis aujourd'hui à cause de mes amis :)


Lots of love!

~Erin

Photo order: L to R

(Bre, Me, Claryn, junior year, 2009) 

(Bre, Claryn, junior year, 2009) 

(Jana, Bre, Claryn, junior year, 2009)

(Bre, Isabel, Me, senior year, 2010)

(Isabel, senior year, 2010)

(Jana, Bre, Alicia, Isabel, senior year, 2010)

(Me, Bre, senior year, 2010)

(Me, Jenness, summer after senior year, 2010, Disneyland)

(Disneyland! 2010)

(California Adventure! 2010)

(Jenness, Me, summer after senior year, 2010, Disneyland)

(Jenness, Me, summer after senior year, Disneyland, 2010)

(Me, Alexis (neighbor), kindergarten, 1997)

(Margaret, Bre, Me, Jana, summer after freshman year of college, 2011)

(Margaret, Jana, Bre, summer after freshman year of college, 2011)

(Jana, summer after freshman year of college, 2011)

(Margaret, Me, freshman year, 2011)

(Nichole, Arielle, Me, freshman year, 2011)

(Me, Nichole, freshman year, 2011)

(I don't know this person, Me, Alie, Daisy, Alex, Jaimie, Cory, Nichole, Hailey, Kathleen, freshman year, 2011)

(Shane, Nichole, Kelsey, Robbie, freshman year, 2011)

(Kathleen, Alie, Jaimie, sophomore year, 2011)

(Haya, Arielle, Kendra, Kathleen, Kelsey, sophomore year, 2012)

(Joe, Andre, Lauren, Alexa, Me, Arielle, Shelby, Erin F., Erin V., Nick, sophomore year, 2011)

(Kelsey, Me, freshman year, 2010)

(Nichole, Kate, Me, Kelsey, freshman year, 2011)

(Nichole, Art, Marina, Shane, sophomore year, 2012)

(I don't know who this person is, Jackie, I don't know who that person is either, Hassan, Kelli, Haider, Vishakha, Becca, Me, Nick, Scott, Joe, Andre, freshman year, 2011)

(Arielle, Art, freshman year, 2011)

(Scott, Jackie, Haider, freshman year, 2011)

(Nick, Joe, Andre, sophomore year, 2011)

(Lauren, Me, Arielle, Marina, Art, sophomore year, 2011)

(Me, Lauren, Alexa, Erin F., Arielle, Shelby, sophomore year, 2011)

(Nichole, Me, Art, Marina, sophomore year, 2011)

(Art, Marina, Alexa, Arielle, Lauren, Joe, Nick, Andre, sophomore year, 2011)

*Cammisha, I would post a picture of you and I together in middle school (8th grade grad.), but I figured you might hate me for it, so I refrained. You're welcome :)*

Aaaaand it took me around 45 minutes to collect all of those pictures, so it is now 2am. Now it's really not Gratituesday anymore. Hmph.