a-michael

My High School Years

http://animoto.com/play/XRSkrF0dWFzv1ssBBIH0Yw

Oh, hello there English Classmates, what’s up? I’m Michael Anderson, and these are My High School Years. I will never forget the 4 years I’ve spent in high school. I know everyone and their brother probably says that but I like to think my story is unique, just like myself. Now if I had one word to describe my High School life, it would be “Music.” I hit the ground running my freshman year at Green Hope, already meeting tons of new people in the marching band. As any marching band member will say, their freshman year is a blessing because you start off your career as a high school student with 100 friends who all know what you are going through. The show that year was titled “A Beautiful Mind,” and actually it was probably my toughest year in the marching band. Seniority was a powerful force back then, with the senior class being the absolute rulers of the band and as an underclassman, I was in no place to argue with them. Heck, because of a senior one of my earliest memories of the band was I being used as a footrest, but I digress. One of my favorite memories from freshman year was also getting the chance to dance the Thriller with my section for a marching band skit night; it was extremely entertaining, and made me feel really close to my section. Freshman year marching band was a great experience overall, and was a great beginning to my high school experience. Once marching band was over, life as a freshman really kicked in. I was actually getting over a childhood problem of paranoia at the time, and because of it I had some difficulties getting along with some people. But if you don’t mind me saying, even during this time I was extremely outgoing. I knew a majority of my class back then, and I recall saying “hello” to tons of people in the halls every day. Near the end of my first semester I joined the Green Hope Jazz Band. Back then there were two jazz bands due because so many were interested in it, Jazz Band A and Jazz Band B, with the most skilled players in Jazz Band A. Needless to say, I was in Jazz Band B. But I went with it! I learned about swing and improvisation for the first time that year, on a brand new instrument as well. As my freshman year came to a close, it probably would have felt really insignificant had it not been for our Band Director Mr. Brian Myers. Although Mr. Myers and I started off a bit shaky, well, in my opinion, he awarded me the Heart of the Band award at my first band banquet. It was a great honor to me, and it left me in great anticipation for the next year’s show: “The Road Less Travelled.” I both loved and hated sophomore year, in that order too! As I started my 2nd year of marching band, I was on yet another new instrument and in a new section as well. It felt like I was almost starting all over again, but this time was different. The low reed section of 2009-2010 was possibly the best thing since sliced bread. I made great new friends such as Chelsea Meacham, Will Schoefler, and Nathan Tew, all freshmen in the section at this time, and I don’t think I could ask for a better group of newbies to work with. But of course a section would be nothing without its upperclassmen, that year’s being Stephanie Manuel, Kristin Chapin, and Heath Hyman. Oh am I forgetting someone? Oh gosh, how could I forget! Our fearless section leader of the low reeds: Mr. Adam Carrera. Adam was a great friend of mine, we had countless laughs on the field, and although he was a senior, he made me feel almost like an equal. He was like the brother I always wanted, and I associate a majority of my great times during sophomore year to him. That year the band actually travelled to the Gator Bowl over New Years, where we won the right to perform our show during the pre-show. It was an absolutely crazy trip, and one of my favorite marching band moments. But my sophomore year was not all fun and great times; it was actually one of the toughest years of my life. It all started with the passing of our family cat, one of the few pets that have actually survived over a year with our family. After this unfortunate event occurred, just weeks later I was told that my Grandmother would be living with us for awhile. And I suppose now would be a good time to say I wasn’t too fond of change back then… And with that being said, it felt like everything was changing around me. Not to mention I was already fighting a rigorous course-load and having some medical difficulties to boot. At this point, it felt like I needed to get away from my surroundings, my family, my life. It was too difficult to handle, and I felt like I was going absolutely crazy. Thank God at the end of my sophomore year I was accepted into the North Carolina Governor’s School for the summer of 2010, the perfect chance to escape my current environment for a whole 6 weeks. Oh Governor’s School. Possibly the greatest 6 weeks of my life. I met some of the best friends I could ever ask for, friends I will remember forever. I can’t remember a single bad day at Governor’s School, it’s like what dreams are made of. Being acknowledged for a particular skill, in my case Instrumental Music, and learning all about life, philosophy, and society in general. And what makes it even more overwhelming is that there were hundreds of others who had the exact same interests as me. But the one thing I will never forget about Governor’s School is what I said to my Mom after my last day. She asked me, “did you learn anything about yourself?” and I replied, “I learned plenty, but most importantly, I found myself.” (Pause)
 * Freshman Year**
 * Sophomore Year**
 * Junior Year**

Once Governor’s School came to an end, it was again time for marching band! Junior year’s show was “The Trials,” based off of the Salem Witch Trials. It was my first year as a part of the leadership team for the band, and I never stopped trying to stand out and show my hard work that year. But the marching season started off rather shaky with the news that a member of my section, Nathan Tew, was diagnosed with Leukemia. The band in general was devastated, and my section was in shambles. It was such a difficult year without him, but Stephanie and I worked hard to teach our new freshman and to keep the experience great for all. She was a great section leader and a great friend to me and to the section as well. We all learned just how strong she was that year. Unfortunately, Nathan passed later that year, but I’ll remember him forever. After such a miserable sophomore year, school was actually fun in some ways; it was a daily opportunity to see the people who really mattered to me. Many of my friendships really grew that year, such as with my pal Shuhei Tsurumi, who’s now at UNC right now working on becoming a professional ninja… I think. As it turned out, 3 saxophones were not enough for me junior year, and I took on the monster that is the Soprano saxophone. And it was all for the Spring musical, “Once on This Island.” Now, I can’t say much about the musical since I wasn’t actually in it other than I had some awesome friends in it, such as Kendall Bagley, Brennan Clark, Ken Akiyama, and Sammi Vittert. And while they were up there performing, I was having fun with my fellow band members in the pit orchestra, while they suffered from my attempts at playing, the Soprano Saxophone… And finally, we reach my senior year. My final marching band show was known as “Liszten,” and boy what a show it was. This year I was the section leader of my fellow low reeds, and I also had the honor of being Woodwind captain, putting me in charge of all other woodwind sections as well. It felt great being recognized for my leadership, and I was so happy to play such a large role in the organization that meant so much to me. And on top of all that, I was also chosen for a solo this year! I mean, wow, playing alone in front of a huge audience is not something I was used to doing. And when I said huge audience, I meant it. This year we went to Bands of America Grand Nationals at Indianapolis, possibly the largest high school marching band competition in the country. It was such an amazing experience, playing in front of the best of the best, and marching on the same field on which the Super Bowl would be played. This year was also my 2nd year of playing in the musical, and my 4th consecutive year of playing in the jazz band. Both were awesome programs that really made my time at Green Hope feel special. But yet again, even with all of this happening, my senior year would not have meant nearly so much if it hadn’t been for the friends I spent it with. There are so many people over the years that I really grew to care about, whose friendships I wouldn’t trade for all the money in the world. I started and ended high school with my best friends, Liam Gaynor, Patrick Jones, and Mikey Peterson, and met many more awesome people such as Richie Oakley, Luke Friedrich, and yeah even Heather Berk. Oh and there is one last person I’d like to give a shout out to, but I think she’d rather be left out of my presentation. Well too bad Dana! Well guys, that’s my story. I can’t say I loved every moment of it, but it’s my own and I can honestly say I’ve never regretted a single moment.
 * Senior Year**