The harsh, cold air of the local nursing home that turns into a warming love. The sad, weary eyes of the homeless at the shelter that light up as their bellies are fed. The dull, gray hallways of an orphanage, filled with children that grin once they see my musical instruments and hear my exuberant laugh. When I tell others these places make me feel most content, people give me that look. You know which one I'm talking about -- "Are you crazy?!" Yet, it's not the physical places that inspire me. It's what I can accomplish within those walls that makes me feel like the greatest woman alive. When I bring forth a smile on a person's face, my heart sings with the most upbeat tune and I feel completely fulfilled. Since a smile does not represent a physical place, my happiness comes from the places where I can make the most of a person's smile.

My biggest dream is to be the source of people's happiness. Through my music I will accomplish just that. Even now when I arrive at a nursing home with instruments in hand and a tune on my lips, heads turn and the elderly begin to sing and dance, even before I start to play! The greatest smile I have ever seen came from a paralyzed man. Lying in his chair in the hallway near the nursing station, I could feel Robert's extreme sadness as I approached.

The nurses said he never smiled or talked to anyone. However, when I started to sing him a song, his eyes lit up and the corners of his mouth lifted. "Mama said I was a dancer before I could walk. She said I began to sing long before I could talk. Thank you for the music!" This classic song from "Mamma Mia!" -- one that I have sung many times before, changed Robert's day. I was told that Robert lost mobility -- as well as his wife -- in a fatal car accident a few years earlier. No one had been able to connect with him since he had been admitted to the nursing home, but I was making that connection then and there.

As I sang with Robert, nurses started to come over -- when they saw him beaming, they stood and watched in disbelief. "Please come back! We need young people like you and your musical abilities to brighten up these halls." My talent brought a healing moment to that place, and the feeling was beyond comprehension. At that defining moment I knew -- music therapy is the career for me. If I can change someone's life with a few lyrics and a smile, I can only imagine what I will accomplish with an education and the knowledge that will prepare me for this wonderful career.

I live for the feeling I get when people respond to me with enthusiasm and affection, such as Robert did that day. People who live purely to please themselves miss out on amazing opportunities to find gratification in making a difference in others' lives. I have been fortunate to have many great experiences serving others through my music, and it is powerful to share these moments with individuals that can benefit from my talent and love of music. My contentment comes from seeing other people delighted and full of life. Choosing a path that will make me happy is important, but when I can light up someone else's world, the satisfaction is much more immense and worthwhile.