How did I end up here?

                There is an old saying “If you wasn’t to make God laugh, make plans”- more often than not this saying has proved true in my life. When I first moved to Ohio five years ago, I never dreamed that I would one day attend Wright State University.

                All through my high school years my mom talked about this small college in Virginia that she wanted me to attend - and I thought that I would more likely than not end up there. So the summer of last year, I went out there for an “experience” program. The campus was gorgeously located in the Shenandoah Valley. All the classes and professors were so focused and fascinating. In short, I really liked it. (…except for the cafeteria food!) One of the things that probably affected my decision was the eight hour road trip to come home…it just seemed so far to me!    

                 This past year I was content to put college on hold for a while, do some more looking around and maybe apply for the winter term…but it did not work out that way. My piano teacher decided I needed help and so she began talking to me about music education. She urged me to call my voice teacher and set up lessons in preparation for a vocal audition while we prepared pieces for a piano audition. So after about a month and a half of practice, I found myself at Wright State early in the morning and supposedly ready for all this. Despite my fears and worries I did all right and was accepted in both vocal and piano. And so, that is how I ended up here at Wright State!

The Star-Spangled Banner

I love The Star-Spangled Banner. I get a tingly sensation every time I hear it performed. I would have to say that this song has affected my life the most for two reasons.

First, I was not born in this country - I am an adoptee from Seoul, Korea. At the age of six months I came to the United States, but ended up moving to Korea when I was six and a half because my dad was in the military. Many people here in America truly do not know how blessed we are to live in such a country and take for granted all the privileges, opportunities, and freedoms we possess as American citizens. If I had lived as a Korean citizen I would have had no opportunity to attend college and most likely would not even have a chance to get a decent job for a living. Being an American citizen is definitely one of the greatest blessings and opportunities in my life.

The second reason is that the National Anthem is the first song I ever performed for an audience. It was the National Anthem that made my parents and I realize that I could sing and instilled a desire in me to perfect and use that gift to reach out to others.

The classic lyrics are amazingly inspiring and still apply to us today even though it was written over two hundred years ago. My favorite is the third verse which is not very well known – “Oh thus be it ever when the free man shall stand. Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation! Blest with victory and peace, may the heaven rescued land. Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation! Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, and this be our motto: ‘In God is our trust!’And the Star-spangled Banner in triumph shall wave Over the land of the free and the home of the brave!”

Baking Cakes

Last March I was asked to make a birthday cake…and not a little homely cake like the kind that your mom makes for you, but a 3-D cake shaped like a teapot for a little girl’s birthday party. Little did I know what I was getting myself into…and now baking cakes is one of my favorite creative things to do!

The first creative cake that I ever made was a 16-in round John Deere-themed cake. “Nothing Runs Like a Deere” was written in vividly dyed green, yellow, and black buttercream icing. My brother sketched the design for me from a John Deere T-shirt. After poking hundreds of little holes into the paper drawing, I was able to transfer the outline of the picture onto the chocolate cake using powdered sugar. Icing it was literally “a piece of cake”…as easy as coloring in the lines of a picture in a coloring book.

My latest project was a pig cake. Yes…a cake shaped like a pig. It was amazing how quickly this cake came together. The most challenging part about this creation was actually designing it. All I had as a reference were a couple of pictures pulled off the internet. I baked the cake batter in an oven-proof bowl to form the head. The legs and snout were formed out of mini loaf pans. An oblong oven-proof pan created the body. The eyes, ears, tail, nostrils and prize ribbon were all made out of gum paste. Plenty of frosting sculpted him into the perfect shape and made him taste sweet as well.

Just in case you are wondering…do I take orders? Unfortunately the answer is no…school and work take up all of my spare time now, but maybe I will some day.