February 25, 2005
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Spidy, my ever faithful question hound, asks:
Whatever happened to the songs you wrote back in middle school? I remember TheIdiotSavant bringing them up way back before Christmas break, and I’ve just sort of been wondering myself about what happened to that side of you. They were really good songs, as is true with a lot of the stuff you do, but did they ever go further than the sheet music you wrote them on?
Well Spidy, the music part of my creative life slowly faded. My inspiration for the two pieces I wrote in seventh and eighth grade turned out to be . . . less than inspirational. As far as what happened to them, I recorded them on CD (I think I had 10 made?) and gave most of them away as I had not the heart to charge money for them. I think I still have a couple, but I’ll always keep one for myself. I can always burn copies if anyone wants my humble piano dabbles.
Another good one: What do you miss most about high school? What do you miss least? Given a choice, what would you do over again?
I miss seeing familiar faces every day. I miss my friends, I miss teachers, I miss being a part of band and choir. I miss all the background people in my life, the people I said “good morning” to every day. I miss the relaxed atmosphere of Mrs. Cary’s classroom, sitting in the warm morning sun while she taught us, working with Billy on every project and barely doing quality work in the nick of time. I miss the smell of the art room, the paint and the clay. I miss the slamming of lockers at the end of the day, that victorious percussion that signaled victory over yet another school day. I miss the smell of gravel dust on the bus as I rode home. I miss watching the little kids on the bus, how excited they were about literally anything. I miss coming home and lying in the afternoon sun on my bed, opening the window and hearing the wind whisper in the trees as birds sang and fluttered around. I miss spring, I miss fall, and when I’m in school, in the city, I can’t watch the world live. Everything is concrete and noise. I miss the feel of rock and grass beneath bare feet, the smell of rain, the ocean-like sound of corn rustling in the night. I miss rain on my window.
What do I miss least? Nothing. All of the things I disliked about high school are amplified ten-fold at college. That, or, the things I once thought I disliked I ended up missing.
Would I go back if I could? Yes, if I could go back to ninth grade and relive it over I would. I would be more courageous and I would not make the same stupid mistakes I often did. I would live with less fear, I would step out. Maybe I would even have gone out for a sport, who knows. All I know is that I miss that life considerably and I tell every high school student I meet to treasure their years; they’ll end before they know it.
Man am I in a sentimental mood right now. I better not feel like crying all night or I’ll get really pissed off. Oy.
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Comments (7)
Jake, every thing you put in that is exactly what I miss about home and high school too. Not the regret parts, just the sounds, the sights, the smells, and the memories. Funny how things you got sick of are some of the things you miss the most. Much luv to you my brother.
buddy i would have to disagree….
no one could pay enough to go back to high school, i do miss seeing a face and knowing the story that goes behind it, but i love the new excitingness of college, know that i can make my own choices. not that i couldnt in high school, there was just way to much drama in high school. even now when i go home i can look at all my friends that are sad to leave their senior year behind and know that i was there once. High school was fun, i loved it. but everything in college has been just as great. i just love it here. i could never go back, i know the rest of my life is up hill. High school was great… but it can only get better, i absolutly love everything about my life here, the people i have met, what i have experianced and everything. wow it would probably make some of my high school friends real mad if they read this, but its the truth, i love it here. Thanks for making me realize that even more jake. Your a great friend. Thanks for everything.
lol. A future journalist is a question hound? Naw, really. I’m still trying to think up some more for you to answer, but it might take me a little bit. I’ll comment with them when I get them.
A lot of the things you posted are things I miss as well… Not so much the smells of the classroom, but the familiarity with which you were treated. But, at Wartburg I still have some of the same. I can walk into the J-lab or the library and have people say hello to me that I’ve only had in one class or talked to once in my life. The funnier moments are the people who remember my name and I don’t recall theirs. Obviously, I’m making an impact here at Wartburg, and I wouldn’t change that for the world. The only thing I think I’d change about high school, would be to find a way to undo whatever an unmentionable “friend” did to seperate us as friends. That, and taken the time to embrace being a dork earlier and realizing a lot of the rest of the world is jerks to be ignored. Well, have a great week, and if I come up with more questions I’ll post them later.
A single tear managed to break free after reading this.
Thank you.
That makes me less anxious to get out…but then again, even more so…
Jake… will you message me sometime on aol… i deleted all my buddies so i dont have you… so yeah please im me so i can add you!! talk to you soon!
hey jake
its nikita . long time not talk i hope to hear from you soon and i hope that school is going good.
nikita