True Dreams of Wichita

Listening to "True Dreams of Wichita" and thinking of all that has happened in the past three months as this summer draws to a close and I prepare to begin a hectic semester of 18 hours, I recognize a sinking feeling I have had. I am sadly aware that I may have had my last true summer of long mostly carefree days spent lounging around, enjoying the company of friends and making a few bucks.  Yet in completely unexpected ways simply remaining home in Kansas over the summer made for one of the best summers of my life. Spent forging new relationships, solidifying older ones, and recognizing personal growths, I am extremely sad to see this summer fade into the past. Saying goodbye to my mother yesterday in the same place where this summer began proved to be harder than expected. I wasn't the kid suffocated by my parents all summer, itching to get back to college and freedom like I thought I would be by the time August rolled around. Instead I was painfully aware of all that I was saying goodbye too. Three wonderful monumental months with family and friends that I will always cherish. I feel as if I have a wonderful memory from every single day this summer as opposed to a couple from a vacation I took. Everyday counted this summer and everyday brought something new. As I move forward into a hectic semester and try to ignore the fact that college is flying by much faster than expected I take comfort in the fact that the memories I have of a wonderful summer spent in Wichita can always live in my dreams.

Music to Live By

As I write this post I am simultaneously sampling music on Amazon and Youtube. Music has always been an escape for me, a source of comfort, or an expression of feeling when I was unable to create these for myself. Some of my most treasured memories of music involve being six years old and sitting in front of my grandparent's tv watching CMT all day long. Another is listening to Coldplay upon my airplane's descent into Paris on my first trip to Europe, a place I had longed to visit my entire life. A less happy time music has come to play a major role in my life is when I would lie in bed at night and listen to songs that expressed how I felt after my first relationship ended. Music is an amazing outlet for human emotions. It also is a great way to preserve and conjure memories. Although I have no musical talent, I have respect for what music can communicate that the spoken or written word cannot. Even a piece of music that is simply instrumental can convey ideas and feelings that words cannot. I know that no matter what life throws at me, music will always be an inspiration to me as well as a profound way of coping with unavoidable disappointments.