Just to be honest, I’m not really sure what this Wednesday’s question is. I just have this story to tell y’all, and I guess you can decide what the takeaway is.

Like I already mentioned in this Monday’s post, I love choir. I love everything about it: the warmups, the music-reading, the tryouts for solos, the last-minute rehearsals… When I was in middle school, my school’s choir decided to participate in the World Choir Games 2008 in Graz, Austria.

The preparation started the second the first rehearsal of the school year began. Even though it was still ten months until summer at the time, we already plunged into it. In order to perform the four songs we picked for the Games perfectly, we trained every day of the week, and in the last two months even on weekend evenings. Occasionally there were complaints; a few people even dropped out. But July came and we flew to Austria. The Games were a huge success. We won silver medal. And we had so much fun as a team together, picnicking along the Mur, hanging out by the fountain in front of the Town Hall, putting on makeup in a tiny restaurant before the competition…

In short, it was a wonderful time. Everyone bonded over the Games, and our time spent in the scenic town of Graz. Because I had always remembered Graz with a smile and warm memories, when I started planning my trip to Europe this summer I could not not add Graz to the itinerary.

So, on July 22^nd, 2013, exactly five years after I left Graz, I was back. I took a taxi from the train station to get to the downtown area. The taxi dropped me off in a small street just off the town center. As soon as I rounded the corner, I almost burst into tears. There, right in front of me, was an ancient building decorated with frescoes that I took an exact picture of five years ago. Even though I couldn’t remember about the building, I knew it was the building I’ve seen before as soon as I saw it. That feeling when my past suddenly somehow caught up to me was strange: I was overcome with acute nostalgia, yet I was not sad; I was happy, no, delighted, to be back again, even though I was on my own this time, without the rest of the choir.

Staring at the building, I started to have this thought about life and growth. Sometimes you don’t realize that you’ve changed until you see something that haven’t. Returning to Graz is one of these things. The historical part of Graz which I remember ever so clearly hasn’t changed one bit, but I was completely different. I am no longer a girl; I’ve grown into a young woman. That powerful difference made me gasp at how much time can do to a person, how much I’ve grown. When I got back to my hotel that night I realized that I would’ve regretted it tremendously if I didn’t put Graz on the itinerary.

So that’s my story. I guess there really isn’t one single question to ask. Perhaps I just wanted to make a proposal: revisit a place that meant a lot to you during your childhood or adolescence. Let the unchanging show you the change.

After doing that, here’s a question for you: how does it feel?

xx

Vanessa :]

On Boredom

Exactly two hours and thirteen minutes earlier, school let out. I'm now officially on Thanksgiving break for the next ten and a half days. Since I'm leaving campus with a friend of mine who happens to have still not done her laundry nor packed nor figured out where she put her christmas shopping money, I am stuck on campus with a prone-to-increase amount of unstructured free time.

More simply put: I am bored.

I spent the first thirty minutes hunting food in the cafeteria, stuffing anything my fingers can touch into my mouth. I had two bowls of soup, chatted with my friends for the longest time possible (which is, before they all got tired of watching me drink soup and left). Then I went back to my room, packed a little myself, and hung around the dorm lounge with a few fellow layabouts. 

And after that, I have nothing to do. So I find myself bored out of my mind.

Which is wrong.

I remember when I was a little kid, my dad set this house rule for me: There is no such thing as boredom. So I couldn't complain that I was bored, because there always had to be something that I could do. Looking back now, this No Boredom rule is part of the reason why I spent my long summer days reading books, or why I learned to ride a unicycle (YES! I can ride a unicycle), or why I decided to learn some Korean.

So just now, when I was sitting here, thinking about how bored I was, I remembered the No Boredom rule. And how long it's been since I last followed it. Over the years school has kept me on my toes 24/7, busy with one thing after another. So when all of a sudden there is no school and just pure good break, believe it or not, I don't know what to do! I sit here thinking I should relax, but I don't know what tv show I should watch--not even the idea of taking a nap appeals to me now! Because I just. Have. So. Much. Time!

But I can't live like this. I'm going to feel even more dispirited and less rested if I spend the next ten days of my break roaming around feeling bored. I SHALL FOLLOW THE NO BOREDOM RULE! I shall read books and go out to town and even maybe shop a little (well, a lot, on Black Friday that is). And if your break is coming up too, you should do the same. Do something productive. Get your butt off the couch and stop laying about. DO IT! You will find yourself in a much better mood if you try to be active over break--trust me. This is the advice from someone who used to not know boredom (and is trying to re-unknow it now).

Happy Thanksgiving break everybody!

xx

Vanessa

Things to achieve in life:

1. Play piano like an epic mixture of Chris Martin and Yiruma.
2. Write with the imagination of J.K. Rowling, the humor of John Green, and the force J.R.R. Tolkien.
3. Sing like Florence Welch.
4. Go white water rafting.
5. Use the adjectival version of the word of pedofile at least once.

Go!