I first knew I needed to make music my path when I spent a few days at a pre-orientation for a top technological institute. I was around intellectual peers, had real science-y experiences and loved the beautiful campus. But the lack of music made my heart ache, and that was how I knew.
Absence can be the best reminder of what you really love. It’s consistently been the best clue for my path.
Now, my two great professional loves are writing new music and working with my own ensemble. When the summer rolls around, and I don’t get weekly rehearsals, my heart yearns for the work. That’s how I know that I need to conduct.
When I have a week that conspires to steal my writing time, as this one did, the evidence exists that I get increasingly grouchy about my lack of time to create. Even though my mood might sour, though, I am heartened. It means I’m in the right place, doing the right thing. That’s how I know that I need to write.
What do you love to do? Do you ever spend time away from it, and does it tug your heart when you do?