Again

I know I've said this before, but if you haven't listened to Jon Foreman's "seasons" EPs, you're missing out. Big time. His final project "Summer" was just released and it certainly does not disappoint. Here are the lyrics to my favorite song, "Again":

Oh Lord, God of our fathers
this day let it be known
That you Lord,
Are God of the present tense

Oh Lord, Father of history
this day let it be known
That you Lord,
Are present in our human events

Answer me, Oh Lord
Let your people know
That you’re turning our hearts
Back to You…Again

Holy Holy
You alone are true
Holy Holy
You alone are true
Turn us back towards you

He reminds me of Derek Webb, another favorite of mine, in his simplicity & beauty. Both men write haunting music filled with a passion for justice. Both guys are definitely worth a listen!

Would You Rather....?

I've been obsessed with "Would you rather..." questions lately. They're usually so random and interesting. I also love the conversations that they can spark. So, here are a few of my favorites so far that I've read.

Would you rather puke marbles or sweat cheese?

Would you rather be born with a refrigerator on your back or have an elephant as a close, personal friend?

Would you rather be 4'1" or 7'9"?

Would you rather be able to hear any conversation or take back anything you say?

Would you rather forget who you were or who everyone else was?

Would you rather be a tree or live in a tree?

Would you rather be able to fly or live to be 200?

Would you rather sweat continually for 24 straight hours all over your body or have an irremovable metal pin in your jaw that picks up a New Age radio station?

Would you rather attend the Last Supper or discover Jesus' empty tomb?

I'd love to hear your answers...and give you mine. :)

Oh, the Summertime...

Since I'm all about lists, here are some fun things I've done so far...
- Become a senior!!
- Grad parties
- Paintball at the Browns'--so intense {and super fun!}
- Book shopping and pool time with Jessie
- Sleep-over at Hache's
- Dinner and mini-golf with Adam, Justin, RGu, Drew, and Chris
- Ladies ensemble practice--always a fun time!

Pretty exciting, considering I've only been on break for 5 days! :)

Here are some things I'm looking forward to...
- Fair Trade Party at our house tomorrow night
- Celebrating Christine's 18th birthday
- Flying to North Carolina and spending time with Annie
- PYA
- Myrtle Beach trip with Jessie & the fam
- Reading lots of books {including This is Your Brain on Music}

I haven't forgotten about my list of things I've learned...it's coming...eventually. :)

The Major Question

I've realized that I've pretty much changed what I want to major in, oh I don't know, basically every day. Soooo, here is a list of major/minors that I've considered in the past month or so:

- Music Education (the original plan)
- Music with a Christian Ministries minor
- Fine Arts {self-constructed: Geneva doesn't actually offer one}
- Fine Arts Education with a minor in Christian School Teaching
- English Literature with a double minor in Music & Teaching English as a Second Language
- Music with a Theatre minor

Therefore....I have no idea what I want to do. Everything I've thought about is in the same general area of study, just switched around in different ways. I still have a strong desire to study music, even if it ends up just being a minor. As of right now, I'm leaning towards just general Fine Arts {concentration on Music} because I'll be able to study a wider variety of things and won't be limited to just one thing. I know that the majority of people going to college either have no idea what they want to do or change their minds soon after, so I'm trying not to worry about it too much. :)

Senior 09!

So random school stuff that makes me happy:
1. You need 25 credits to graduate high school...guess who already has 25? Yup. Me. :)
2. Therefore, I'm taking a total of THREE real classes next year. All of which I enjoy {AP World Lit., AP Western History, Church History&Apologetics.}
3. So my other classes will be: Choir, Phys. Ed., Yearbook, Chapel Planning, and Senior Project.
4. Which brings me to the next happy thing...Mrs. Boelcke is teaching Sr. Proj. next year. 'Nuff said.
5. I'm also going to continue to work on my Music Theory next year, as well as {hopefully} helping Mrs. Struble with some of her elementary music classes.
6. Senior Project will probably take up a lot of time for me as well. Lots of photog-ing to be done! :)
7. I'm also going to be Student Council President next year {no one is running against me, so I'm pretty sure I've got the job.}

So it's lookin like it's gonna be a fun & easy senior year. Woo-hoo! What an answer to prayer! I don't think I could handle another bad year, especially my last year at good ol' RTCS. :'(

Coming Soon...

A complete list of things I've learned this year. And believe me, there are many. I'm putting the finishing touches on it and when it's done, you'll be the first to see!

ps. I gave up on wordpress for now.

Changing Times

I just created an account on wordpress and am realizing that I am terrible with technology and changes. haha. I don't have the patience to figure it out at the moment. haha.

Here's the address:
jmestuart.wordpress.com

I've Got Chills They're Multiplying!

I've been working on a playlist composed of songs that give me chills (not including the title song)

Here's what I've got so far (in no particular order):
ps. This list does not include any Broadway songs full of awesomeness...it would be too long if it did. :)

"What Sarah Said"- Death Cab for Cutie
"Ten Thousand Angels"- Caedmon's Call (Derek Webb)
"The Lighthouse's Tale"- Nickel Creek
"Oh My God"- Jars of Clay
"John Wayne Gacy, Jr."- Sufjan Stevens
"El Tango de Roxanne"- Moulin Rouge
"He"- Jars of Clay
"Falling Slowly"- Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova (also my most played song)
"Mother India"- Caedmon's Call
"Give Me Jesus"- Jeremy Camp
"Lover"- Derek Webb
"Untitled Hymn"- Chris Rice
"Black Balloon"- The Goo Goo Dolls (this one's slightly random--but it does!)
"How Deep the Father's Love For Us"- pretty much anyone singing it
"Come What May"- Ewan Mcgregor <3 & Nicole Kidman
"What You Want"- Caedmon's Call (Derek again!)
"The Sun and Moon"- Mae
"100 Years"- Five for Fighting (funny hs memories...)
"Eileen"- The Hush Sound
"Set the Fire to the Third Bar"- Snow Patrol
"My Heart Will Sing"- Silers Bald
"Come and Listen"- David Crowder Band
"Firefly"- Over the Rhine
"Your Love Is Strong"- Jon Foreman
"Worlds Apart"- Jars of Clay
"Jesus I Come (Out of My Bondage)"- Indelible Grace
"Hear You Me"- Jimmy Eat World
"Welcome To Our World"- Chris Rice

This is only the first draft of my list. I'm sure I'll probably cut and add stuff, but anything on this list is definitely worth listening to. I'd love your suggestions/comments! :)

Your Love Is Strong

I thought I'd share some lyrics from one of my {current} favorite songs. It's called "Your Love is Strong" by Jon Foreman (lead singer of Switchfoot). Jon Foreman has released 3 EPs this year--"Fall", "Winter", and "Spring". I'm a big fan of all of them and am very excited for the final "Summer" EP. This song is from the "Spring" album and is based on the Lord's prayer.

Your Love Is Strong
Heavenly Father, you always amaze me
Let your kingdom come in my world and in my life
Give me the food I need to live through today
And forgive me as I forgive the people that wrong me
Lead me far from temptation
Deliver me from the evil one

I look out the window the birds are composing
Not a note is out of tune or out of place
I walk to the meadow and stare at the flowers
Better dressed than any girl on her wedding day

So why do I worry?
Why do I freak out?
God knows what I need
You know what I need

Your love is
Your love is
Your love is strong

The kingdom of the heavens is now advancing
Invade my heart, invade this broken town
The kingdom of the Heavens is buried treasure
Would you sell yourself to buy the one you've found?

Two things you told me
That you are strong
And you love me
Yes, you love me

Your love is
Your love is
Your love is strong

Our God in Heaven
Hallowed be thy name
Above all names
Your kingdom come
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven
Give us today our daily bread
Forgive us weary sinners
Keep us far away from our vices
And deliver us from these prisons

Even If You Saw It Yourself, You Wouldn't Believe It

Oh my goodness! I can't believe I haven't blogged since November!! Wow. Time is going sooo fast. After the show is over (1 week from now is opening night!! Ah!!), I'm going to attempt to keep up with my blogging again. *cross fingers* For now, here are some random thoughts...

*Here's what I've been keeping busy with:
- AP Lit: reading 1984, W.B. Yeats poem explication
- Anne of Green Gables rehearsal til 8 pm or so every night
- Learning how to act drunk for AGG
- Listening to new music, now that my hard drive is working again (I'm especially enjoying Copeland at the moment.)
- Yearbook
- Other misc. homework
- Taxes (not cool)
- Barista-ing (although I'm off for 2 weeks b/c of the show)
-Dyeing my hair (I'm pretty sure it's becoming a hobby.): At the moment it's really dark brown for the show. I'm dyeing it red again as soon as it's over though.
- Eating lots of chocolate

*I thought I'd share a few of the haikus (is that right? as in haiku as a plural?) I wrote for Mr. Stark's AP Lit. class. They're inspired by Japanese death poetry. Exotic, huh? Basically that means they are short, slightly ambiguous, metaphors for death.

Here are some of mine:

An empty swing rocks gently
in the cool autumn wind.

A crash of thunder and
all goes dark.

A polished stone skips across
the water's surface. Sinking.

A soft crunch of fallen leaves.
Man continues on his way.

If you're interested at all, I'm happy to share the meanings behind them. Just ask!

*Someone needs to help me swankify my blog...

*Well I'm off to read more of 1984 and get some rest for a 6 hour rehearsal tomorrow (and breakfast with the cast at 10 am--no school tomorrow!)