The days are going by very quickly. I can not believe that we have been living in Oregon for 3 months now. And at other moments it seems crazy that we have accomplished so much in only three months. I am already at midterms at portland state for my first quarter, and Blake is taking his fifth test tomorrow. So far he has been doing great and getting above 90% the first time which is great. i have every confidence that he will do just fine on tomorrows test as well. Well besides going to school full time Blake has been playing the Oregon in church every week. I know he likes this calling because it is a sunday only calling and he does not have to worry about it during the week. I am the laurel advisor which means i teach a lesson twice a month and have activities with the girls on wednesday nights, some of which i don't make it too. I have also picked up a small job on tuesday and thursday nights were i tutor a 14 year old girl. I meet her last night she is busy busy and likes to talk but what 14 year old girl does not like to talk. I always said that i would not know what to do with daughters seeing as i don't have any sisters and i had very few girl friends growing up. it seems the lord is teaching me what to do with teenage girls in around about way seeing as 3 nights a week that is who i am hanging out with teenage girls. It's funny now that i am not a teenage girl i like to be around them a lot more.
I have a degree and am working on another degree in teaching music but at the moment i seem to be teaching everything but music. On sundays i teach nutrition, time management and the importance of education along with other useful things. On Tuesday and thursday i tutor in Geometry, science and computers. I just thought this was an interesting fact.
I had a very interesting conversation last night about the church. i would like to note a couple things. first i was told a very touching story from a german violinist i had dinner with. He told me of his first violin student she was a 20 year old LDS girl, who he said had the sweetest spirt. he said you could not help but lover her not a romantic love but just love her. He said that she seemed to know things. She was hit by a garbage truck taken to the hospital where she was put back together and lived only to suffer a stroke shortly after and pass away. He was told at her funeral that she had written emails to some of her friends before she was hit telling them that she was sorry for being busy and wishing them the best in their lives. She seemed to know her time was at an end and was ready for it he was very touched by this. he said that he was given a book of mormon in german at the funeral, but has not chosen to convert. My thoughts on this are i am sure that young women had no idea what an influence she was being by just living the gospel to the best of her ability, she is a great example to me. And second i hope that when we give Books of Mormon to nonmembers we have the courage to follow up with it. Find out if they read it and answer any questions they may have. I may never see this German Violinist again but by one conversation with him i want to be a better person.
Never be afraid to share what you know.
I was also asked by another dinner companion that night about the members in Portland compared to the members in Utah and was happy to tell them that no matter where you go the church is constant the same. I told them that when i got to portland the missionaries were unpacking my home and the bishop was there with a list of doctors for me and food for that night so that i would not have to stress about the small things in my condition. this questions was asked by a person who claims to be anti-religious but pro community and wonders why charity(this is not the word he used) has to be tied to a religion. Why can't you pull up to your new home with a moving truck and the neighbors just come out and help no matter what religion anyone is? I love this thought and as members of the church we should be showing charity to everyone not just fellow members and the world should follow suit.
well those are my thoughts for the day.
Jamie
29 October, 2009
21 October, 2009
Quest for Knowledge
Blake and I have emerged ourselves in a typhoon of information. Struggling to gather as much of this information as possible and cram it into our heads only to be expected to recall said information at a moments notice. How are we handling our said adventure? Our heads are held high, our shoulders back and we fake a confidence that will see us through to the end. Our days are repetitive, and slightly mundane; mine is spent in a practice room where i shlep my way through pages of music, labeling this as R and this as L, remembering to keep my hands low and my sound even. Others may hear the repetitive"1e&a 2e&a" under my breath only to be answered by that dadatdada of a snare drum, while preparing for an ensemble rehersal. Most of my daily confersations are with myself arguing over how this or that is to be played. The dual personality of teacher vs. students dialoge playing in my head.
Blake on the other hand spends his day surrounded by 97 other students trying to make there way through slides of information and the constant dialoge of professor after professor after professor. only to be left with hours upon hours of processing the information and understanding course objectives. The evenings are spent hunched over a lap top and surrounded by books. The hours of the day becoming shorter as the information becomes exponentially larger.
Blake on the other hand spends his day surrounded by 97 other students trying to make there way through slides of information and the constant dialoge of professor after professor after professor. only to be left with hours upon hours of processing the information and understanding course objectives. The evenings are spent hunched over a lap top and surrounded by books. The hours of the day becoming shorter as the information becomes exponentially larger.
02 October, 2009
I had to write this for class, just thought i would post it.
“Jamie, I think it is time you quite piano lessons. You just don’t have the musical ability to continue.”These are the words that were said to her as she left elementary school. She happily complied with her piano teacher and never took another piano lesson. She was not, however done with her musical exploration.
Jamie was born in 1986 to Randy and Loralee Wagstaff and at two years old moved into the home she would spend her childhood, a fruit farm next door to her grandparents. She spent the next 16 years learning to work hard. She learned skills such as pruning, thinning and picking peach trees, driving tractors, raising cows, canning food and taking care of younger brothers. Along with these skills Jamie and her brothers, Aaron and Caleb, were expected to take piano lessons through elementary school. After that they could choose to continue with these lessons or to pursue a new venture. It was at this time in her life when she chose to study violin.
Through the violin Jamie found reasons for living and a way to express emotions that had not and could not be expressed any other way. She made great lifelong friends with other students in orchestra, her stand partner in particularly, Braden.
Braden was a fine violinist and amazing pianist. Together they worked on many projects most of which would end in a church, inspiring emotions in others. While playing in school and taking private lessons was an essential, nothing brought more joy to Jamie then waking up and attending symphony rehearsals on Saturday morning. This is where she learned to love Schubert and take comfort in Brahms. Through this symphony she was able to learn and grow as a person and as a musician. During her senior year of high school she was invited to play in a side-by-side concert with the Utah Symphony. She also received the national school orchestra honor and director awards. The violin then led her to collage where she had intended to study music education with an emphasis in violin. However this goal was slightly altered along the way.
The Southern Utah University Professors were desperate for percussionists. They watched the students carefully, looked at their goals and aspirations and then approached Jamie in an attempt to recruit her as a percussionist. They started slowly, asking her to take a half hour lesson with the Percussion Professor, Dr. Patrick Roulet. When that was accomplished they then asked her to switch entirely and be a Percussion Major. Since there were no other percussion majors at the university, she was thrown into the deep end of things; playing in four ensembles a week and figuring out how to play each instrument quickly and accurately. Through her hard work and dedication, she found an energy and new found love for music of a different nature. As her senior recital approached Dr. Roulet left the University for ventures of his own. While Dr. Lynn Vartan took on the role as teacher and advisor for Jamie’s last year of undergrad.
As graduation approached, Lynn encouraged Jamie to consider her options of teaching or continuing her education. Graduate school was not something that she had considered before even though her husband Blake Francisco and been very open to the idea of her continuation in school. Jamie knew at this time that her destination was set for Portland, as this is where Blake was headed for pharmacy school. Her options were limited, but spirits were high, and she applied for Grad School at Portland State University, only to with draw her application months later when she discovered she was pregnant with their first child.
Five months later, as they prepared their move to Portland, Jamie went in for an ultra sound. She was there to find out the sex of the baby and yet she felt sick with nervousness, some part of her knew something was wrong. Her doctors couldn’t tell the sex, the fluids were low and something was wrong. She was sent to a specialist in St. George the following day. She found out her baby was going to die, she hates the specialist. That morning they had moved out of their home, her bed and comfort was packed in a U-Haul headed for Portland.
On arriving in Portland, Blake did everything he could to get Jamie to a doctor. It took a lot of time and yelling at people over the phone, but he got her into the best doctors for high risk pregnancies. After four hours of being poked with ultrasound equipment and needles the doctors told her that her baby had Body-Stalk Anomaly. There was a zero survival rate. She lost the baby.
With the pieces of her life and soul scattered about, she made the decision to try. To try and put some part of a life together in Portland. She contacted the Professor, at Portland State, Dr. Joel Bluestone and asked for help. He remembered her from her application before and pushed her application through the system. School started in less than a month.
Now she stands at a new door of opportunity and exploration. She may be more battered, her soul maybe bruised, but she is no worse for it. Emotion is what makes a musician. It is the ability to evoke such emotions into others, to allow them to feel what they may not have been able to on their own.
Jamie was born in 1986 to Randy and Loralee Wagstaff and at two years old moved into the home she would spend her childhood, a fruit farm next door to her grandparents. She spent the next 16 years learning to work hard. She learned skills such as pruning, thinning and picking peach trees, driving tractors, raising cows, canning food and taking care of younger brothers. Along with these skills Jamie and her brothers, Aaron and Caleb, were expected to take piano lessons through elementary school. After that they could choose to continue with these lessons or to pursue a new venture. It was at this time in her life when she chose to study violin.
Through the violin Jamie found reasons for living and a way to express emotions that had not and could not be expressed any other way. She made great lifelong friends with other students in orchestra, her stand partner in particularly, Braden.
Braden was a fine violinist and amazing pianist. Together they worked on many projects most of which would end in a church, inspiring emotions in others. While playing in school and taking private lessons was an essential, nothing brought more joy to Jamie then waking up and attending symphony rehearsals on Saturday morning. This is where she learned to love Schubert and take comfort in Brahms. Through this symphony she was able to learn and grow as a person and as a musician. During her senior year of high school she was invited to play in a side-by-side concert with the Utah Symphony. She also received the national school orchestra honor and director awards. The violin then led her to collage where she had intended to study music education with an emphasis in violin. However this goal was slightly altered along the way.
The Southern Utah University Professors were desperate for percussionists. They watched the students carefully, looked at their goals and aspirations and then approached Jamie in an attempt to recruit her as a percussionist. They started slowly, asking her to take a half hour lesson with the Percussion Professor, Dr. Patrick Roulet. When that was accomplished they then asked her to switch entirely and be a Percussion Major. Since there were no other percussion majors at the university, she was thrown into the deep end of things; playing in four ensembles a week and figuring out how to play each instrument quickly and accurately. Through her hard work and dedication, she found an energy and new found love for music of a different nature. As her senior recital approached Dr. Roulet left the University for ventures of his own. While Dr. Lynn Vartan took on the role as teacher and advisor for Jamie’s last year of undergrad.
As graduation approached, Lynn encouraged Jamie to consider her options of teaching or continuing her education. Graduate school was not something that she had considered before even though her husband Blake Francisco and been very open to the idea of her continuation in school. Jamie knew at this time that her destination was set for Portland, as this is where Blake was headed for pharmacy school. Her options were limited, but spirits were high, and she applied for Grad School at Portland State University, only to with draw her application months later when she discovered she was pregnant with their first child.
Five months later, as they prepared their move to Portland, Jamie went in for an ultra sound. She was there to find out the sex of the baby and yet she felt sick with nervousness, some part of her knew something was wrong. Her doctors couldn’t tell the sex, the fluids were low and something was wrong. She was sent to a specialist in St. George the following day. She found out her baby was going to die, she hates the specialist. That morning they had moved out of their home, her bed and comfort was packed in a U-Haul headed for Portland.
On arriving in Portland, Blake did everything he could to get Jamie to a doctor. It took a lot of time and yelling at people over the phone, but he got her into the best doctors for high risk pregnancies. After four hours of being poked with ultrasound equipment and needles the doctors told her that her baby had Body-Stalk Anomaly. There was a zero survival rate. She lost the baby.
With the pieces of her life and soul scattered about, she made the decision to try. To try and put some part of a life together in Portland. She contacted the Professor, at Portland State, Dr. Joel Bluestone and asked for help. He remembered her from her application before and pushed her application through the system. School started in less than a month.
Now she stands at a new door of opportunity and exploration. She may be more battered, her soul maybe bruised, but she is no worse for it. Emotion is what makes a musician. It is the ability to evoke such emotions into others, to allow them to feel what they may not have been able to on their own.
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