I Love To See The Temple

Jenifer and I went to the Logan Temple one day to walk around it and take pictures. But guess what, it was SO cold and so we didn't stay long.

The night before I visited Temple Square with my amazing roomates Jenifer and LeAnne!

You know what? All of them are so pretty. Temples, I mean. And who WOULDN'T want to get married there? They are like CASTLES, which is perfect for a princess like me.

I love to see the Temple

I'm going there someday!

But seriously, I'm SO grateful for temples. There's something about this season that just makes you so much more grateful for things. As we celebrate Christmas this year, we celebrate without my Gramma Savage and without my Uncle Blaine. It's is such a wondeful thing to celebrate our Savior's birth. Because of Him and his glorious sacrifice for us, we all are comforted by the fact that we will see Gramma and Blaine again. Because of temples, and the fact that my Granparents were sealed together for time and all eternity AS WELL as my own parents and Blaine and my Aunt Marleigh, I know this is possible.

Familes Can Be Together Forever BECAUSE of our Savior, Jesus Christ, whose birth we celebrate on Saturday.

Merry Christmas!

Perfect Two by Auburn

Once upon a time, there was girl named Sarah Anne and she had a roomate named Jenifer. One day, they were watching a movie called "Juno" where there was the most EXCELLENT line:

"YOU ARE THE CHEESE TO MY MACARONI."

Fantastic, right? Anyways, THEN Sarah happenstanced upon the most AMAZING song EVER. And today, she has listened to it at least 20 times. No joke. And here are the fabulous lyrics:

You can be the peanut butter to my jelly

You can be the butterflies I feel in my belly

You can be the captain, and I can be your first mate

You can be the chills that I feel on our first date

You can be the hero, and I can be your sidekick

You can be the tear that I cry if we ever split

You can be the rain from the cloud when it's stormin'

Or you can be the sun when it shines in the mornin'

Don't know how I ever could be without you cause boy you complete me.

And in time I know that we'll both see that we're all we need.

Cause YOU'RE THE APPLE TO MY PIE

YOU'RE THE STRAW TO MY BERRY

YOU'RE THE SMOKE TO MY HIGH

YOU'RE THE ONE I WANT TO MARRY

Cause you're the one for me

And I'm the one for you

And take the both of us

And we're the perfect two

You can be the prince and I can be the princess

You can be the sweet tooth and I can be the dentist

You can be the shoes and I can be the laces

You can be the heart that I spill on the pages

You can be the vodka and I can be the chaser

You can be the pencil, and I can be the paper

You can be as cold as the winter weather,

but I don't care as long as we're together

Don't know how I could ever be without you cause boy you complete me.

And in time I know that we'll both see that we're all we need.

Cause YOU'RE THE APPLE TO MY PIE

YOU'RE THE STRAW TO MY BERRY

YOU'RE THE SMOKE TO MY HIGH

YOU'RE THE ONE I WANT TO MARRY

Cause you're the only one for me

And I'm the only one for you

And take the both of us

And we're the perfect two.

CUTEEEEEEEE! Right? Right? Yes.

Well, my roomate and I think this song is adorable.

And NOW, I think you had better watch it:

This is made by some BYU students . . . including my friend Clara Compare!

Enjoy amigos!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNbRFF1A67Q

First Band Practice of the Clarinoke Girls of Fernando

Lightly Row

Yes. It's true. I have graduated from the flute to the clarinet. And I don't know about you, but I think I sound kind of . . . oh, what's the word . . . AWESOME? Ha. Alright, so MAYBE I've got a ways to go. But I love this learning all the instruments thing! It's a BLAST!

Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis by Ralph Vaughan Williams

Sometimes, I just feel so inferior.

So here's the story:

I've played violin since I was four years old. That's 15 years. 15 years of not practicing very well. 15 years of loving performing. 15 years of the beautiful 4 stringed instrument that is just a part of my identity. I grew up being known as the girl who plays the violin. In the small town where I grew up, that WAS my identity. And I let it become that way. And I took it for granted.

Because, guess what? I'm not all that great. I let it go to my head that I was one of the only really good violinists in town growing up (so, I didn't know about all the other people . . . I decided that I was the most magnificent and I let people know.) So for 15 years, I have let the fact that I play the violin, and that I play it well make me an arrogant and cocky snob who believed for a while that she was SO spectacular and she didn't even have to try all that hard.

For the past few years, I have gotten away with hardly any practicing. I have shown up to every Utah Valley Youth Symphony Orchestra rehearsal with no outside practice, and here's the thing: I could play nearly everything with not much effort.

So here's what I decided. Today in church we talked about talents. And you know the quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson? "That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do, not that the nature of the thing is changed, but that our power to do is increased." Well, might it be possible that I'm only good because I've played for so long? And by "good" I don't mean amazing virtuoso good. I just mean able to play or fake play most everything without even trying. I have learned how to pretend like I'm amazing, and I've spent the last 15 years doing it.

And so, I know things have got to change. I want to be a Music Educator SO dang bad. I just KNOW that's it's what I'm supposed to do with my life. I don't have a plan B. And what it takes is my acceptance into the Music Program here. What it takes is some practice and humility. Because since being here, I've realized that I'm really only a mediocre at best violinist. I'm really terrible compared to all the violinists already IN the music program. And I don't KNOW anything.

On Friday night I watched the USU Symphony Orchestra perform this song. This is a selection from YouTube -- not the one I heard but sounds similarly gorgeous:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5y7nJL1hpUU

Within the next few months, I have to undergo some major habit and mind transformations. I need to practice. I need to be humble enough to realize that I am only going to get where I need to go with some serious, serious effort.

15 years. Time to start over.

Just the Way You Are by Bruno Mars

"But every time she asks me 'Do I look okay?' I say:

When I see your face, there's not a thing that I would change,

Cause you're amazing

JUST THE WAY YOU ARE."

AND IN TRIBUTE OF GIRLS WHO ARE BEAUTIFUL JUST THE WAY THEY ARE:

Alright. This is the epitome of cute. Like for serious.

And it is VERY true the girls are way too critical of themselves -- myself included. We're all very insecure. Moving into an apartment with five other wonderful beautiful girls has made me realize just HOW hard we are on ourselves.

So yes, it's true that we don't like going anywhere AFTER we've washed all our make-up. And yes, it's true that I was late to a class one day cause I HAD to wash my hair. And we change a million times because we're never QUITE satisfied with how we put ourselves together that day. And even the girls we think are absolutely STUNNING are insecure. In fact, sometimes they end up being horribly and ridiculously insecure, with NO reason to be.

But guess what? We are all BEAUTIFUL WONDERFUL RADIANT DAUGHTERS OF GOD.

And NEVER forget that!!

Mary Had a Little Lamb. Classic.

So, if you don't find this INCREDIBLE, I don't know what will impress you.

And yes, I have been playnig the flute for about three weeks now.

AWESOME. I should go pro.

Bulletproof by LaRoux

Honestly, this song only relates to this day because I heard it on the radio while in a car with four of my new roomates.

There's Chelsea. I met her first. She's so nice! And she is fabulous at decorating. Her room is ADORABLE. It's all red and black. She's so cute!
There's Corrine, who bought a poster with cupcakes on it today. Isn't that FANTASTIC? She's so dang cute!
There's LeAnne, who I had an adventure with today while trying out the bus system here on campus. Cute girl!!
There's Sarah, and perhaps I should refer to her as Sarah Beth. Gets a little confusing at times when we're both there. We've got to figure that out. She's SO pretty! And a sweetheart.

I have yet to meet my "room" roomate. She'll ber here soon. And her name is Jennifer. I'm sure she's awesome!

And here I am, typing this on my bed in my dorm room, room #301 in Rich Hall on the campus of Utah State University in Logan.

And PS: Happy birthday Mom! I love you SO much! I miss you!

For Good from Wicked

"It well may be, that we may never meet again in this lifetime,

So let me say before we part:

So much of me is made from what I learned from you

You'll be with me, like a handprint on my heart.

And now whatever way our stories end,

I know you have rewrit mine by being my friend."

The Holy Cheese Trio and Miss Coleman

Band nerds Bryson, McCall, and Ryan

Joe.

Dallin.

Shun.

YW friend Lindsey

Miss Kenna!!

Oh James.

Senor Nate

EFY! Amy, Shelley, Natalie

Italia Amicis: Mary, Ayn, Ellie

My "older sister" Dani (remember Youth Conference)

Cousin cuisine!

Beautiful Brescia and Lovely Liz

AND

Carissa, Julie, Ellie, Mariah, Katelyn, Melissa, Stacey, Cameron, Elle, Josh, Kris, Paul, Camille, Heather, Sister Davis, Heather Thaxton, Kathy Buell, Mr. Siggard, Jarom, Keley, Kylan, Brandon, Natalie, Holly, Kelli, Brother Bennett, Sister Baker, LaWynn, Michael, Kayla, Brigette, April, Sam, DruAnn, Brother Woodruff, Cassidy, TVT Orchestra, WHS teachers, YW Leaders, violin students, and SO many more!

LOVE.

"BECAUSE I KNEW YOU, I HAVE BEEN CHANGED FOR GOOD"

Renegade by Styx

TRIBUTE FOR UNCLE BLAINE.

In honor of my Uncle Blaine, this Classic Rock (not to mention 80's) song has been absolutely STUCK in my head since Sunday when my cousin Dani first played it to me while we were compiling music for a slideshow to play at the viewing. This playlist consisted of such artists as Styx, Journey, Toto, Boston, Kansas, etc. CLASSY stuff. Seriously. I know Blaine loved it, and now his kids adore the stuff too.

Sadly, we opted for hymns to play in the background instead . . . probably the more reverent choice.

And really. Look this song up. It's AWESOME.

PS: The last three words I ever heard my Uncle Blaine say were ," Party on dudes!" from Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. Some words to live by. And really, if you think about it, those words can be applied in such a way that they were advice to keep on moving in life, not be bogged down by sadness or grief. So party on. Dudes.

God Be With You Til We Meet Again #266

Last Wednesday my Uncle Blaine passed away in our home, with his family and my own family surrounding him.

Today was the funeral.

Aunt Marleigh is such a strong woman.

Dani looked stunning in her new brown "Sister Missionary" outfit and gave a fantastic eulogy.

Josh looked snazzy in new suit. And he has some attractive friends. Cough cough.

Alexis gave the sweetest prayer I've ever heard.

Kyle is Kyle. He's a good great kid.

It's been a LONG week. We're headed to Bicknell to bury Blaine in the same cemetary as Gramma Savage.

PS: When you have the Spirit on your side, it's easy to perform as amazing as Itzack Perlman. Not to be arrogant or anything, but the Spirit helped my performing skills go nowhere they had been before on "I Know that my Redeemer Lives" today. I sat down after not quite sure how I had been able to play like that.

Be Still My Soul #124

This morning I heard one of my best friends in the world slowly trying to play her favorite hymn "Be Still My Soul" on the piano. It was one of the sweetest parts of my day, because we've had a HARD day.
This beautiful wonderful girl is soon to watch her Dad journey to Heaven.

Be still my soul: The Lord is on thy side

With patience bear thy cross of grief or pain

Leave to thy God to order and provide

In every change he faithful will remain.

Be still my soul: Thy best thy heav'nly Friend

Thru thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

To Marleigh, Dani, Josh, Alexis, Kyle.

I love you.

Smile by Uncle Kracker

"I'm lucky just to linger in your life"

Tchaikovsky and Taylor

This is my symphony, the Utah Valley Youth Symphony performing the theme from the Sleeping Beauty Ballet by Tchaikovsky. My participation with this group was one of the best things that I have EVER done in my life. I think we're kind of AWESOME.

You know what else is awesome? Family. And laughing at ridiculous songs. Here is a selection on the mandolin by my cousin Taylor:

And there you have it. Refined and . . . alright, not so refined.

PS: Today I got my audition piece for the Utah State University Symphony Orchestra. And guess what? I played through it today and it was relatively EASY. Yesss.

Human of the Year by Regina Spektor

Once upon a time there was a girl named Sarah and she made two friends in her puny high school orchestra named Robyn and Brittany. These three girls (not to mention EXTREMELY attractive and fabulous violinists) formed a trio, which later came to be known as the Holy Cheese Trio . . . which is kind of a lengthy story . . . so just go with me por favor. Anyways, one day Sarah heard this particular song and fell in LOVE. And because the obnoxious amount of times Brittany asked Sarah for a ride home, it was only a matter of time before Brittany would hear the song, and then soon Robyn. Thus, the ridiculously nonsensical lyrics of this song spoke to these crazy ladies and here is an excerpt for your viewing pleasure:

Hello, hello, calling a Carl Projectorinsky to the front, of the cathedral

You have won, dear sir.

May I congratulate you first? OH what an honor.

Human, HUMAN OF THE YEAR.

And YOU won!

Why are you so scared? You stand there shaking in your pew.

The icons are whispering to you. They're just old men, like on the benches in the park -- except their balding spots are glistening with gold.

And there you have it.

But seriously, this is a tribute to the "HOLY CHEESE TRIO"

These girls are FANTASTIC and will do great things. And they are some of the best friends I've ever had. Thanks so much!

This Is the Christ written by James E. Faust

Happy Sunday!
I chose this wonderfully gorgeous song that I have had in my head ever since we listened to it in Relief Society a couple weeks ago.

"They heard His voice, a voice so mild
It pierced them through and made their souls to quake.
They saw Him come, a man in white.
The Savior, who had suffered for their sake.
They felt the wounds in hands and side.
And each could testify:
THIS IS THE CHRIST

This is the Christ, the holy Son of God.
Our Savior, Lord, Redeemer of mankind.
This is teh Christ, the Healer of our souls.
Who ransomed us with love divine.

I read His words, the words He prayed
While beaing sorrow in Gethsemane.
I feel His love, the price He paid.
How many drops of blood were spilled for me?
With Saints of old in joyful cry
I too can testify:
THIS IS THE CHRIST."

Just so you can feel the same Spirit that I do, here is a link (or copy and paste it) to listen to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir perform it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7Mt-XHfWx4

The words are beautiful!

I know my Savior lives.

I know he died for ME.

"How many drops of blood were spilled for me?" The whole concept of the Atonement is beyond my comprehension.

He made it possible for me to live with my family FOREVER.

That's like . . . FOREVER.

And spending a week in Hawaii with JUST them and no other outside influences that I knew, I realized something:

Each member of my family is my BEST FRIEND.

And so I absolutely love the assurance that I have that I KNOW I will be with them forever and ever.

And so, with much love,
Have a beautiful Sabbath day!

Leaving on a Jet Plane by John Denver

Well, since I'm ACTUALLY leaving on a jet plane tomorrow, I thought this song would be appropriate, especially since I shall not be posting for a week.

Cause I'm off to HAWAII.

This is correct. Hawaii. This is the vacation that has been spoken of in our family for years and years. The deal was: When Sarah graduates, the family goes to Hawaii. Good plan? I know. And it's been the plan for as long as I can remember. So you can imagine my excitment at the prospects of finally getting to fulfill this goal! And if you can't, let me just say: I'm so excited I can hardly stand it!

And as a side noet: another song that I will think of is "Happy Birthday" because two good friends are turning older this next week:
Happy 20th birthday to my "older sister" Dani -- you've still got 6 days to pull off a teenage marriage! Haha. Nah, just one year closer to a mission? I don't know. All I know is that you're soon to be in a whole different decade then me. You're SO OLD! But I love you so much!
And happy 16th birthday to Camille. You beautiful girl. I love you to death, and please get out there and have no fear around boys! Cause you're awesome! And they will love you! And did I mention DRIVING? Oh yes, Miss Camille.

And so, I bid you 'ALOHA' as I venture to the tropical island of Oahu. Yessss.

"All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go"

The Man Who Can't Be Moved by The Script

"How can I move on when I'm still in love with you?"
Alright, one thing I ought to confess: I am a hopeless romantic. And I chose this song for today because I love the story it tells.
And perhaps I understand waiting for someone that you miss. And they don't come back. It's really hit me as I've graduated and as I leave all my younger friends behind. . . not to mention all my graduated friends that are seperating and ending up in a million different places.
And it's not like I'm going to hang around Heber, where I've grown up my whole life, and just wait for them to come back. But still, I will miss them all because

they all made me who I am.

And it's so strange for me to wrap my mind around the idea that I may not see them again. There are too many 'what if's' and 'why did this happen this way' and it's so awful being caught in the somewhat cloud of uncertainty about my future.

I know what I want in life: to be a music teacher, to fall in love with a devastatingly handsome returned missionary and marry in the temple and have my very own family. But you never know what life will throw at you. I know that for sure. All my fairy tale fantasies about a guy that will sweep me off my feet (around 6 ft, blonde, light eyes, intelligent, spiritual, possibly plays the piano or guitar, etc.) is hard to imagine.
I got so caught up in high school and the idea that THAT is what life is like, and I got so used to it. But that's definitely not all there is. I'm just stuck in this in-between phase between dependent and independent, between child and adult, between young womens and relief society, between careleess and responsible. And I need to make up my mind about where I belong soon or I might die!
Which brings me back to the lyrics "how can I move on when I'm still in love with you?"

I have been in love with this time in my life.

I loved the familiarity of school each year and of seeing the same people and having a family to come home to every night. And it's all about to change. And I don't want to move! I just want to stop the inevitable and keep all the things I've grown to love around me. BUT that defeats life's purpose. It wouldn't make me the person that I need to become.
And so, I am
"The Woman that MUST be moved"
Dang it.

Dream by Priscilla Ahn

My name is Sarah Anne. And I absolutely adore music with every fiber of my being. Here is some of my musical background:
I play several instruments:
Violin: 14 years, involvment in the Utah Valley Youth Symphony, State Solo/Ensemble Superior Ratings, teaching beginner's lessons, pit orchestras for theater productions, countless performances
Piano: 8 years, Heber Valley Piano Festival, playing for Church/Seminary
Trumpet: 1 year, Wasatch High School Band
Organ: 3 months

I have noticed that in my life, there is usually a particular song that tends to be my

"song of the day"

And so, every day, I will post the song that has been stuck in my head all day.

Today is "Dream" by Priscilla Ahn
Favorite lines:
1. "I could fly from the highest swing": I love swings. So very much. And I understand thsi feeling of flying. I love to get away from my world and just swing on one of the swings on our swingset in our backyard sometimes. It is so very therapeautic.
2. "I asked God who I'm supposed to be": I am a very religious person. I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and I love this line because I think it's important to ask God about all aspects in my life. And I truly believe that He will direct us to the path that we are to take in life. I feel like I am destined to share my music all my life. It is my way to better the human race in my small way.

And there you have it. My very first song of the day!