I am the one who haunts your dreams of mountains sunk below the sea..
I never really write anymore, and I'd like to change that. It just seems that every time I sit down to write an entry it turns out way longer than I would have hoped and I just don't have the time to spend an hour and a half on entries like I used to. But I just wanted to share this short informal essay I wrote for my English class. We were supposed to write about three non-family related influences and analyze how they affect us. So I picked music, cycling, and Jeff Lukach. Even though I whipped this together fairly quickly, I'm pretty proud of it, and it kind of gives you an idea of what's going on in my life at the moment without saying much. Here we go:
When I was in the third grade, all the children were sent to the auditorium to watch a string instrument demonstration by the Billerica Music Department. On that day, I ran home from the bus stop and spontaneously told my mother that I wanted to play the violin, and a couple weeks later I had that beautiful instrument in my hands and I started taking lessons.
I don’t know what made me decide that playing the violin would be a good idea. Maybe it was the Jaws theme song demonstration on cello or the fiddle song that Ms. Cardella demonstrated. Whatever the reason is, I am so glad that I started playing the violin and that it has been part of my life for over ten years now. Music is general, but the violin in particular, has enriched my life and as cliché as it may sound, helped me ignore the outside world when I simply needed out. I love playing the violin by myself but there’s also something very special about playing with a group of people whether it’s a small chamber group or a gigantic symphony orchestra. There are moments when playing with a group that are rare but so perfect, it’s overwhelming and almost indescribable. For a moment everything falls into place and everything-the people, the instruments, the sound waves, the vibrations through the air and the floor-fall in sync with each other and it’s almost as if time stops for a minute. Playing, as well as listening to, all different genres of music has given me a different outlook on life that I don’t think I would have without it. Big D and the Kids Table describe how I feel in one of their songs: “Music, a steady riot in my soul, always in me.”
Another passion in my life that has grown even more recently is cycling. I’ve always loved riding my bicycle, and even after I got my license I would continue to ride everywhere within a reasonable distance instead of wasting the gas and the opportunity for fresh air and free spinning. Since attending UNH, I’ve started actually racing my noble steed. In the fall, mountain bike season, I raced in Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine at various mountains and this spring I’m going to be road racing all over New England, as well as completing my first century ride in Florida. Cycling, especially for a woman, is quite an empowering activity and sport. There’s nothing better than sweating through a strenuous two hours on a trainer, weaving through rocks and roots through the forest, and passing the guys on the hill climbs. When I’m on my bike I feel free and happy and sometimes even invincible. Although eight months ago the idea of potentially bike racing never even crossed my mind, I now can’t wait to participate in my first road race and feel the adrenaline run through my veins, peddle until my legs feel like their going to fall off and bask in the post-race high (and perhaps glory?) for the rest of the weekend.
Lastly, my third influence is someone that is equally as passionate, if not more, about the above as me and possibly understands me better than any other person on this earth: my boyfriend, Jeff Lukach. In the five months that I’ve known him (that have flown by incredibly fast) I’ve been more comfortable around him that friends that I’ve known for years. What is best about the two of us is that we can do things and go places and somehow share the same genuine life experience, despite the fact that we come from very different backgrounds and upbringings. We have so much left to learn from each other still, and every day with him is an adventure. Since meeting Jeff, I have noticed myself grow as a person, and despite the fact that we go together so well, I have still retained my independence which was very hard for me to do in past relationships. Not only has he been an incredible influence on me over the past few months, but I have also dramatically changed his life, for what he says is the better. When you experience that firsthand it’s hard not to smile to yourself in that fleeting moment before you doze off to sleep at night.
When I was in the third grade, all the children were sent to the auditorium to watch a string instrument demonstration by the Billerica Music Department. On that day, I ran home from the bus stop and spontaneously told my mother that I wanted to play the violin, and a couple weeks later I had that beautiful instrument in my hands and I started taking lessons.
I don’t know what made me decide that playing the violin would be a good idea. Maybe it was the Jaws theme song demonstration on cello or the fiddle song that Ms. Cardella demonstrated. Whatever the reason is, I am so glad that I started playing the violin and that it has been part of my life for over ten years now. Music is general, but the violin in particular, has enriched my life and as cliché as it may sound, helped me ignore the outside world when I simply needed out. I love playing the violin by myself but there’s also something very special about playing with a group of people whether it’s a small chamber group or a gigantic symphony orchestra. There are moments when playing with a group that are rare but so perfect, it’s overwhelming and almost indescribable. For a moment everything falls into place and everything-the people, the instruments, the sound waves, the vibrations through the air and the floor-fall in sync with each other and it’s almost as if time stops for a minute. Playing, as well as listening to, all different genres of music has given me a different outlook on life that I don’t think I would have without it. Big D and the Kids Table describe how I feel in one of their songs: “Music, a steady riot in my soul, always in me.”
Another passion in my life that has grown even more recently is cycling. I’ve always loved riding my bicycle, and even after I got my license I would continue to ride everywhere within a reasonable distance instead of wasting the gas and the opportunity for fresh air and free spinning. Since attending UNH, I’ve started actually racing my noble steed. In the fall, mountain bike season, I raced in Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine at various mountains and this spring I’m going to be road racing all over New England, as well as completing my first century ride in Florida. Cycling, especially for a woman, is quite an empowering activity and sport. There’s nothing better than sweating through a strenuous two hours on a trainer, weaving through rocks and roots through the forest, and passing the guys on the hill climbs. When I’m on my bike I feel free and happy and sometimes even invincible. Although eight months ago the idea of potentially bike racing never even crossed my mind, I now can’t wait to participate in my first road race and feel the adrenaline run through my veins, peddle until my legs feel like their going to fall off and bask in the post-race high (and perhaps glory?) for the rest of the weekend.
Lastly, my third influence is someone that is equally as passionate, if not more, about the above as me and possibly understands me better than any other person on this earth: my boyfriend, Jeff Lukach. In the five months that I’ve known him (that have flown by incredibly fast) I’ve been more comfortable around him that friends that I’ve known for years. What is best about the two of us is that we can do things and go places and somehow share the same genuine life experience, despite the fact that we come from very different backgrounds and upbringings. We have so much left to learn from each other still, and every day with him is an adventure. Since meeting Jeff, I have noticed myself grow as a person, and despite the fact that we go together so well, I have still retained my independence which was very hard for me to do in past relationships. Not only has he been an incredible influence on me over the past few months, but I have also dramatically changed his life, for what he says is the better. When you experience that firsthand it’s hard not to smile to yourself in that fleeting moment before you doze off to sleep at night.