ivories.

WOW.

i just practiced my basic piano scales.

....

i haven't done that in YEARS.

literally YEARS.

oh MAN am i rusty.

if that wasn't a wake-up call, i don't know WHAT is.

new goal:

to be able to translate to the keys what i hear in my head.

....but i have to be comfortable with my scales first.

AH GREAT.

>.<

"one step at a time.

there's no need to rush.

it's like learning to fly or falling in love."

this is a time to treasure,

to cherish.

to enjoy each other,

each other's friendship,

and to get to know each other.

there's no need to rush.

i'll live my life,

you live yours.

i'll focus on the things that i need to.

and so will you.

in the words of pastor sam,

i'll run towards God and my goals.

and if you're running next to me towards the same things,

then....

...nvm, i won't use his exact words.

that's jumping ahead.

but this i know is true:

God's timing is perfect.

we'll take it as it comes.

i'm not going anywhere.

and neither are you.

i'm growing up and letting go of

panicked love, rushed love, antsy love.

immature love.

i'm tossing all of that out.

good things take time.

everything needs its own time to develop and mature properly.

if you pick the peach too soon,

it won't be as sweet as it could have been.

as the old proverb goes:

haste makes waste.

so i'm content to let things take as long as they need.

one step at a time.

God first.

*thanks for the talk tonight, amanda. :)

it's nice to know that God is listening to my prayers

and is bringing people into my life who will go through this with me.

i love you. :)

one day.

my friend is having his interview for LLUSD right now.

oh mann...

it's not even me going in,

but i've been so nervous/excited for him all day today.

one day that's going to be me...

O.o

that's so thrilling and nerve-wracking all at the same time!

AHHH!

teeth doctor.

had a good talk with my dad and mom tonight about dentistry. i had so many questions! there are so many things about dental school and dentistry that i want to learn! & the more i got to know, the more excited i became! dentistry truly IS what i want to pursue. i can't even explain how right this feels...how passionate about it i am...how much i want to learn so that i can be the best dentist that i can. i might possibly want to specialize, but i'm not sure yet. i don't know enough about the different fields to make a decision. i'm pretty sure i won't go into oral surgery or become a periodontist (working with gums). i'm looking into orthodontics or pediodontistry though. i mention ortho. because it's the aesthetic side of dentistry. you're crafting something with your hands to improve people's smiles (if THAT isn't artistic medicine, then i don't know what is! and like i mentioned earlier..[or, maybe i didn't....i can't remember] one of the reasons why i wanted to go into dentistry is because i want to incorporate art into my occupation somehow, and i know for sure that i want to work in the health-care field). pedio- is working with kids, which i love doing anyways. so that's why i'm thinking about that, but idk, we'll see where God leads. :)

oh! my dad's going to help set me up with several dentists and orthodontists in town to shadow. i'm so excited!! :)))) when i was talking with dr. dean the other week, i asked her if i could shadow my dad, and she said that i could, but he won't be able to write a recommendation letter for me. it's best if i spend a lot of time shadowing a dentist who doesn't know me or hasn't known me for a long time so that he/she can give an honest evaluation of how i was as an observer/aspiring dental student and dentist. that was a very good point, so when i mentioned it to my dad today, he started listing off different people that he can contact for me. :))) AHHHHH! i'm so excited. :)))

talking to my dad about this stuff and what he did during his schooling really makes me admire him. i knew that he was smart, but i didn't truly realize HOW smart. he's told me this story probably once before, but the significance of it never hit me. he told me that he applied to UCLA dental school and was one of the first to be accepted and notified. not only that, but he was accepted WITHOUT an interview.

O.o

did you catch that?

withOUT any interview.

do you understand how big that is?!

this is UCLA's dental school we're talking about! not even Loma Linda!

U.C.L-freakin-A.

man, my dad's so smart. he said that his strong science background during undergrad and CLS background helped him a lot in dental school. he hardly studied for these crazy science exams when all of his friends were studying like mad for them. in college, he took a bunch of science classes that he didn't need...like a lot of upper-div science classes...upper-div science classes are no joke. and he took them just because he wanted to. because he was bored and wanted more units.

O.o

who does that?! i mean seriously?!

hhahahhahahha, apparently my dad does! :) and it really paid off for him too!

i'm so proud of him. :)

*sigh, looking ahead to the rest of my academic load this year, it's going to be busy. i'm gonna be overload every quarter. and the next two quarters are the hardest for bio. =/ but you know what? i really can't complain. i think i'm busy, but a lot of my friends have crazy schedules. like amanda's thursdays are 10 a.m. - 8 p.m. straight. chelsea's thursdays are 7 a.m. - 9 p.m. straight, with only one break from 6 - 7 p.m. and ari has a crazy schedule too....so.....yeah, i shouldn't be complaining at all. i guess i just have to learn to manage my time well and get as much sleep as i can.

speaking of sleep, i'm off to do that right now. i need it after this wk. =/

g'night world! sleep well tonight! :)

happy sabbath!

update.

Major: Health Care Management.

Minor: Biology

^(I want to take as many science classes as I can to prep. me for dental school. after talking to my dad and several dental students, this theme kept on coming up: first exposure in undergrad is always better than first exposure in dental school! it's a wise idea to take anatomy, cellular molecular biology, neuroscience, microbio, etc. before you get to dental school. dental school is NOT easy and everything that you can do to make it easier on yourself is a wise idea. all of the classes that are recommended for dentistry are included in the bio minor. so i think i'm going to go with that.)

Honors program: after I ask Dr. Greer and Dr. Malarek to email Dr. Clark my recommendation letters, I'll be in again. that means Turkey trip this summer!!! :)))

Chambers: had my audition on friday and i THINK it went well. Dr. Richards' comments were a little cryptic, but after discussing what he said with current chambers members, i think he was saying good things. turnover is guaranteed, so, though it's not exactly official, i think i'm in. i don't want to say that JUST yet. BUT if it's true, then that means hawaii during spring break! :)))))) *man, i miss that place so much already!

ACA: ...we'll see what happens with this. i still REALLY want to go to italy, but i had a meeting with the ACA office, and the lady there was pushing me to go to spain and learn spanish, especially since i'm going into health care. she gave me this huge talk...uggggggghhhhhhh...idk. in addition to that, if i take italian, there might be complications with the honors program. *sigh. we'll see what happens. i'm crossing my fingers, hoping that i can go to italy. =/

it seems like a lot of money is being spent on trips, but thankfully my parents are a lot more willing to pay since they don't have to pay for tuition for Andrews anymore. it's a huge relief off of their backs. what's nice is that some of my trips are inexpensive or paid for.

thanksgiving mission trip: $250 *relatively cheap

honors trip to turkey: we're still in the process of figuring it out, but my mom talked to someone yesterday, and it's possible that the whole trip while be covered by my scholarship, which would be SWEEET.

chambers tour to hawaii: this one i'll have to pay, but i think part of it will be covered by scholarship that I receive for being in chambers. we'll see though.

ACA: this one i'll have to pay for as well, but it's much cheaper than paying for a whole year of something at LSU, which is $8K.

i'm super excited...God is doing amazing things in front of my eyes, and it's completely blowing me away. :))

no doubt.

there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that i'm making the right decision and that i'm following God's will in staying at LSU to complete my undergrad years. thing after thing happens that's just like...WOW. today was the final "okay, God, i get it!!!" hahahahahhaha!

I just officially switched my major to...

*drum roll please*

health care management!

yes, i know...it doesn't sound very exciting.

but this is actually EXACTLY what i was looking for.

this major is perfect for the pre-dent student.

it's basically 50% science classes

(covering all of the requirements for dentistry and electives in science classes)

and 50% business classes.

here's the description of the major:

"The BS in Health Care Management is designed for the student who wishes to combine the study of business with preparation for admission to post-baccalaureate study in one of the health professions. While incorporating core requirements for admission to medical and dental school, it also features a lean array of business courses (including Professional Practice Management and Fundamentals of Health Care Finance) designed to equip students to understand the business environment within which a private professional practice operates and the business vocabulary and issues they will need to comprehend in order to navigate the increasingly complex world of managed health care."

I can't express the JOY i experience when i met with ms. bauman today and she showed me that the major i was hoping really DID exist. if this wasn't here, i would've had to customize my own major. that involves picking all of the classes for my major while making sure it meets certain stipulations, drafting a list of objectives for the major, meeting with the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, having my draft go through a committee, etc. i was willing to do all of that because this is what i really want. but here it is! right here! all set up for me!

and here's the kicker that almost made me burst out laughing from disbelief in front of ms. bauman (but i held it in, don't worry!)...

this major is super new.

how new you ask?

a few years old?

nope.

one year old?

not even.

try this year.

THIS YEAR.

this is the FIRST year they're implementing it.

it's so new that it doesn't even show up on the LSU website,

which is why dr. dean and i couldn't find it.

can you believe it?! THIS YEAR.

it's almost like God waving a huge sign in front of my face saying "NOW do you truly believe that I want you here at LSU?!" He made the perfect major for me the very year that I decided to pursue something that I really want and that i know HE really wants for me. i thought Nutrition Science at AU was perfect for me...but this is even MORE perfect. i can't believe it....it was created THIS year. do you understand how much time i saved by having someone else create this major for me? but do you also understand how incredibly BIZARRE all of this is?!? maybe not since you're not in my position, but this is seriously an answer from God. right after i made the decision to not go to Andrews, i was really sad and i asked God to tell me whether or not i really made the right decision. i had a feeling that i did, but i wanted to be sure.

so many things have come along in the past 2 weeks that have confirmed that i'm exactly where God needs me to be. MAN if i could just tell you!! it's crazy incredible...

i've been so happy these past two weeks. i feel like i finally know where i'm going in life....like i'm growing up. all of my prayers, questions, struggles with God regarding my calling(s) in life have been answered and are resolved.

ahh, there are so many other things that are going on! i wish i could write them down right now so that i can look back on this later and remember, but i have to go to research in a few minutes. maybe i will later.

Daddy,

You are INCREDIBLE.

and completely worthy of all my praise.

You never cease to amaze me.

i love You. :)