Here we go again...another new year!

This year got off to a rough start, what with a visit to the ER, kidney stones, a new calling (FHE co-chair) and a few million tears shed during a particularly rough week.

But...there is some good news!

Last week I started school again for (hopefully) the last semester! Yes, you heard me...Courtenay is FINALLY graduating in May! And my dad will be happy to hear, that yes, I WILL walk in the graduation ceremony. My friend Marilyn and I will suck it up and do it together, just to please our fathers...her father being Earl, who is like a second father to me.

As the thought of finally being a college graduate is sinking in, I've started thinking of all the things I want to do in my life, when school is done and gone. Some of the things I'm starting to do now, some things will have to wait until school is officially over.

As you all know, music is my life, my obsession, my escape. I've played the piano for over 20 years now (WOW!) but I've always wanted to learn how to play the guitar. I tried to teach myself once when my brother Jon was on his mission. I kept his guitar and was sure that I would have perfected the art by the time he returned home two years later. Instead, during that time I learned only two chords and the beginning riff from "Smoke on the Water."
So, a few weeks ago I went out and bought myself a beautiful guitar, and start lessons with my friends Kayla and Shilo next week!
Hopefully this will also help me to fulfill my dream of writing a song. I started writing lyrics to a song about 10 years ago, and maybe, just maybe I can write some music to complete the thing!
Now the only problem lies in overcoming my fear of singing in front of people so that I can actually share that song with others. That leads into the second exciting thing I am doing this year...
I start choir practice tonight and we get to sing in General Conference in April! Yes I know, there are like 200 people in this choir, but maybe singing in a choir again will actually give me the confidence I need to sing on my own...maybe...

The other night my friends and I were talking about things that we want to do in our lives. And my friend Stef asked us all "What is one thing you've done that you think everyone should experience in their lifetime?" After thinking about it for a little while, I came up with climbing Dunns River Falls in Jamaica. Seriously, it doesn't get much better than climbing IN a waterfall!
The conversation then turned to "What would you do if you were given a million dollars and you had to be selfish and spend it on yourself?" Of course my first answer would be shoes! But then came the real answer of building a library in my house...another goal which is taking shape as we speak. All the books in my house are slowly but surely being moved up into the spare bedroom in my condo. Hopefully soon I will invest in some good bookcases and really comfy chairs! One day I will own a home where I can have floor to ceiling bookcases with a ladder, comfy chairs in front of a fireplace, and a spiral staircase leading up to an observatory...but until then this will have to do!

My dream of working with a non-profit organization is starting to take shape as well. I want to work with a children's organization of some sort, maybe with foster children. But I was recently asked by my friend Joshua to be on the Board for a NPO that he is starting called FUSE. It's a group dedicated to helping troubled youth gain empowerment through the martial arts. It's a bit intimidating to think of all the work we have cut out for us to get this thing off the ground, but it's a challenge that I'm excited for!

All in all, I think that this is the beginning of a crazy, exciting, stressful, beautiful year!