I hadn't realized how soon life will be changing for so many 18 and 17 year olds. I hadn't realized that one year ago, I was preparing to audition for my choice of college, in this case: The Dana School of Music. I hadn't realized that my life was about to completely change...so much. Although change is sometimes a scary idea, I want you to know it's not. Change is not scary anymore, although it can be hard to accept at times, change is growth. And as a high school Senior, graduating in 2017, you are ending one chapter of your life, and growing into another. That may sound cliche, but nonetheless, it is the truth.

Don't afraid of the unknown, don't be afraid of the future, and don't be afraid of your change. No one wants to read a boring book, so screw up, push yourself, and be great things.

Love What You Do

I promise that this will be the most important decision when beginning college: to go for what you love. Whatever you choose to study, will begin to consume every thought, memory, and idea you will have in college. When you're deciding on college, don't go for what makes the most money or what career is safe, you do what you love and devote your whole life to that.

Before I became a Music Education Major, I wasn't sure what I wanted to do. There are so many things I love; nature, writing, biology, traveling, but I know that above all I loved music and teaching and learning. Now? I've never been so thrown and intrigued into music than I am right now. If there's anything you do, make sure you are in love with it, because it will become all of you.

Embrace The Knowledge

You are paying good money to go to wherever you choose, and because of this money, you get some of the finest education from the finest people. It's not everyday of your life where you get to learn from some of the most passionate and intelligent humans around. They will teach you whatever you ask and want because what you're going to school for is what you want. Embrace this. Ask too many questions, go to as many groups and study dates as possible. Talk to each other, to teachers, discover things about yourself and your major, and even not your major. Knowledge is one thing that will never sop growing, the more the merrier, right? And always share what you know.

Get Out Of The Classroom

There's a lot I have already learned from my teachers, but there's also much more that I learn living in the real world. I love to sit in theory and learn about the structures of chords and sales, and then go listen to music and feel what this theory brings to life. I love discussing what I want to teach and how, and understanding the history to education, but what I love and learn from more is going out to schools, building, shelters, and teaching others and truly making a difference. This stands for any person and any major. Explore the world, don't captivate yourself in one building. Humans are meant to explore and teach and express.

You Will Make Mistakes

And that's okay. Something I learned that was unexpected was that these people mentoring and teaching you in college, do not expect you to be perfect. They want you to make mistakes and ask questions to understand and learn. Even outside of the classroom, it's okay to make mistakes; to procrastinate sometimes, or to go out when you really should've studied. A few mistakes is not going to shut your whole life off...as long as you learn from them, and change what you can to love who you are. But trust me, the stress is inevitable, and you will mess up (but so will your teachers sometimes). No one is perfect!

You Will Feel Like Giving Up

And thinking, maybe I can't do this. But I want you to remember that if it was simple and easy, everyone would do it. It's hard to love, and it's hard to keep pushing yourself, but I promise it will be worth it. There is always rain before sunshine.

And You Will Find The Friends And Memories Of A Lifetime

I've lost friends and I've gained friends. The difference between my friends now vs. high school, is that I'm spending time with people who want to push themselves and love something as much as I do. I already have some of the best friends and mentors now that I will never forget, and my real friends from high school (maybe a total of 2) are still here too.

Be Kind, And Appreciate Your Family

This is one I really want to stress. I am extremely guilty of not being kind enough when I come home. You will come home late sometimes, you will come home stressed, tired, and wondering if you'e going to make it through the week, but this is no excuse to ignore them. And when you come home on those days and your parents start asking you how school is, if you ate, if you're getting enough sleep, do not brush them off. That's easy. I know it will seem aggravating and easy to push off because you just want to go into your room and scream into your pillow, but your parents are your biggest supporters, and best friends. They will always think the best of you and all of their questions are only because they care about you and your health, because it's easy to forget about all of that when you're so focused on other things all the time.

I love you, my parents and family, so much. Thank you for forgiving, understanding, teaching, and loving me, even when I seem like I may not care very much, you are my world (outside of music of course).

The road we travel, and the pages we turn, will never stop moving forward. Even when our lives have ended and we've seen all we have and loved all we could, the story will still continue with the people you have impacted. Keep pushing yourself harder, farther, and wiser than before, and never stop walking forward on your road, even if the steps are so small that you may think they're not there.