Some people turn to stuffed animals for comfort. Others enjoy bubble baths and elaborate skincare routines. I have plans. I have backup plans. I even have plans for making plans. While some may view this as too structured, I find the reliability of a plan reassuring. What am I trying to do? What steps do I need to take to do it? What do I need to do it? How much time do I have to do it? Before any task, I answer as many of these questions as possible. There are many things I want to achieve throughout my life, but focusing on one step at a time makes it manageable. My goal is to become a music teacher after earning my bachelor’s degree and a Master of Arts in teaching degree from Christopher Newport University. I am one year into my five-year plan to make this happen. The plan began with being accepted into a collegiate music program, which I achieved in February 2025. I earned enough AP credits to begin college with thirty-one credits, fulfilling several course requirements, including English, Spanish, and mathematics. During this past year, I completed all but one of the general education course requirements and half of the required music theory, aural skills, keyboard skills, and instrument techniques classes. I also participated in marching band, wind ensemble, university band, percussion ensemble, and orchestra. During my sophomore year, I plan to continue to participate in ensembles and finish the remaining lower-level classes required. Band teachers need to be familiar with playing techniques for a variety of instruments, so I will be playing trombone in marching band to gain experience playing brass instruments. I will continue my oboe studies. Percussion ensemble will allow me to continue to learn and improve my skills with those instruments. Over winter break, I plan to take an economics CLEP to finish my general education requirements. I am also going to take a computing course over the summer through my local community college. This will save my family money and free up space in my schedule. During my junior and senior years, my classes transition from being about music to being about teaching. I will be able to observe teachers and apply to the MAT program, which will allow me to earn my master’s degree in five years. I intend to become the tutor for the music department, if possible, to gain more teaching experience and help other students. Finally, in my year of grad school, I will do my student teaching and pass the required tests to earn my teaching license. My current scholarships will not apply to this year, so I will explore other scholarship opportunities. Although my parents are supporting me financially, I would like to lessen the burden of paying for tuition. Throughout my college experience, I will need to take care of myself and avoid burnout. I value my time reading, at the gym, and in nature. Finding time for the non-musical sides of me is essential to my wellbeing, so I build in time for these each week. Additionally, I believe it’s important to have a variety of life experiences. I have been working on getting out of my comfort zone and trying new things. Sometimes it’s as small as taking a different route on a walk, or as big as entering a photography exhibition. It can feel impossible to accomplish this many things, but I believe that with a plan, I can achieve anything.

Once upon a time, there was a girl who loved stories. “Once upon a time” is a classic opening line to fairy tales. There are people who believe fiction books are a waste of time, or only for children. However, I disagree. Stories have helped me develop my understanding of humanity, love, and life, and have inspired me to make the world a better place. Because I have spent my life reading stories which exposed me to a variety of ideas, perspectives, and cultures, I have become very open-minded. I have learned to listen before judging anyone. I have learned that every person’s story is worth hearing. Not everyone will like every story, but that doesn’t mean that story shouldn’t be written. I have learned to believe in the good of humanity but to also acknowledge its flaws. Many of the stories I read have themes of good versus evil. In Soman Chainani’s "School for Good and Evil" series, characters are sorted into two schools, one for good and one for evil, and taught to be heroes or villains. However, good and evil aren’t as black and white as they initially seem. There were honorable, loyal villains, and selfish, manipulative heroes. This series taught me to never make assumptions about someone based on the label society places on them. It taught me to look deeper, because things are not always as they seem. In L. Penelope’s Earthsinger Chronicles, the story is told from the perspectives of characters in two countries which are historically enemies. Initially, it seems obvious that one of the countries is evil and responsible for the suffering of many people. However, once one reads another character’s perspective, one realizes their initial assumption was inaccurate. Books taught me to do the right thing instead of the easy thing, to believe in the ideas of honor and keeping one’s word. Perhaps it’s made me idealistic at times, but I prefer idealism to apathy. Books have inspired me to do what I can to make the world a better place. The quote “you cannot be all the good the world needs, but the world needs all the good you can do” describes my approach to life. Dr. Seuss’ “The Lorax” warns society of the increasing dangers of climate change and not protecting the environment. I might not be able to solve climate change, but I can set goals to do what I can to help the environment. For example, I have goals to reduce my use of plastics and to use native plants in my garden. Throughout my life, books have been an escape and safe space. I have read books containing mythical worlds, extraordinary magic, and fantastic creatures. I fell in love with places that don’t exist and people that aren’t real. I have lost myself in worlds created by my own imagination. I believe everyone should have access to stories and that libraries are an essential part of any community. Because of this, it’s important to me to support my local libraries, even if it's only in small ways. Though I venture off to explore other worlds, I always return with a deeper understanding of reality. I believe there is value to each story. However, one shouldn’t stay so long in a story that they forget to write their own. “Once upon a time,” stories taught me life is to be lived and enjoyed; the moments of today are the stories of tomorrow.

When I was young, I learned how to read music at the same time I learned how to read books. Notes and letters ran like water over the pages, and I ran after chasing the waterfall. Initially, I took piano lessons through an early childhood music program. I remember visiting my grandmother, a musician and conductor whom I didn’t see often, eager to show her my improvement. She sat next to me on the piano bench and tried to help me progress further as my stubborn young self argued over her alphabetical system of notes and the solfège I was learning. Now, her piano rests in my house, occasionally awakened as I caress the keys in an attempt to remember my grandmother along with piano technique. My mother’s flute rests in its case on my bookshelf, the silver metal dulled with age and cool against my fingers when I bring it out to play. If piano was the spark that lit the fire of my passion for music, learning flute was a gust of wind fanning the flames. Playing the flute introduced me to the concert band experience and the joy of improving my skill. Once I felt satisfied with my progress on flute, I began to learn the oboe. Joining the high school concert band led to joining the marching band, jazz ensemble, symphony orchestra, pit orchestra, and the local youth orchestra. As I’ve matured, I’ve learned to appreciate the nuances of music and the range of emotions and stories it can convey. I’ve tried to learn the art of conveying those emotions and stories through my own music. Through it all, I was supported, guided, and inspired by several teachers and performers. I would not be where or who I am today without them. Now, as I begin looking towards my own career, I intend to help others the way my teachers helped me. Every student should be able to learn music if they so desire. Unfortunately, many students do not have these opportunities. Private lessons can be expensive, and private instructors can be hard to find, particularly in areas without local ensembles or for students learning less common instruments. School music programs are often underfunded and led by overworked teachers. Sometimes schools can’t afford quality instruments for students to learn with, or have limited availability. This puts pressure on parents to buy instruments for their students, which can be expensive. Many ensembles outside of school are audition-based, which limits students’ opportunities. Additionally, some students with disabilities face challenges with being accommodated in music. It can be difficult, for example, for someone with limited arm mobility to play an instrument such as the violin. I believe all students should be able to learn music, so I intend to do everything I can to support my students. I will do my best to help each student meet their musical goals, to help them learn and have an enjoyable band experience, and to advocate for school music programs. My goal is to work with high school students in a variety of ensemble settings. In addition to that, I intend to teach oboe lessons. When I began learning oboe, I struggled constantly and had to teach myself a significant portion of what I know. I want to be the teacher I wished I had when I was struggling. Finally, I intend to perform with a local ensemble and share the beauty of music with the audience. Music is something to be shared and celebrated. I hope to use my musical abilities to make the world around me a better place.

I am eleven years old. I hold a silver flute, the metal cool against my hands and lips. I take a breath, then exhale, drawing my first sound from the instrument. It’s a hollow, shapeless sound, yet to me it is a victory. I quickly learn the fingerings for each note, each new sound unlocking a door to making music. Learning the flute teaches me the joy of learning for the sake of learning, to satisfy one’s own thirst for knowledge. I do not know it yet, but this drive to learn my instrument will become important soon. I chose to learn how to play the flute because my mother played it. As I become older, however, this path I am on becomes distinctly my own. I am thirteen years old. I sit in my band director’s office, unsure of why I am there. Mrs. Lawson is a favorite teacher of mine, inspiring me with her character and teaching. She is kind, always positive, and truly enjoys her job. Perhaps, I think, I could become a teacher like her someday. Someone who does some good in the world. She gives me a choice- I can learn oboe or continue playing flute. I don’t know what an oboe is, but I accept her offer without hesitation anyway. Without this moment, this opportunity, I wouldn’t be who I am today. I am sixteen years old. I’m beginning my second year of high school band. The culture of this band is different. It feels like a community, something to belong to. I’m the only oboist at Lafayette, and I’m unused to the pressure that comes with the role. This year I learn to persevere. I learn to trust myself and my abilities. It’s hard, but the idea of giving up is harder. I am eighteen years old. I am the captain of the front ensemble of the Lafayette marching band. Working with my section is the best part of my day. I get to teach my section, but they teach me too. They teach me to let go of perfectionism, to celebrate all progress. Because of them, I learn how to be a better teacher and a better person. I learn how to use skills such as empathy and determination to help our section and each member of it succeed. One day, I will be twenty-two years old. I will be graduating from college. I will be able to use the scholarship money I’ve earned to pay for a fifth year of school so I can earn my Master of Arts in teaching degree. It will be more work and more money, but it will be worth it. One day, I will be twenty-five years old. I will have a job as a band director. I will create a culture of respect and kindness in my band, so everyone feels included. I will be able to use my strengths, such as empathy and passion, to help the band succeed. I will do my best to help my students reach their goals, whatever those may be, and to give them opportunities to be successful. Being a band director and a music teacher may not seem like an important job. But for some kids, kids like me, music is everything. School bands give students opportunities they wouldn’t otherwise have. Many students wouldn’t be able to study music without school bands, orchestras, and choirs. Band gives students a sense of community. It’s a space for students to be themselves. I hope to have a positive impact on my students, the way my directors did on me.