Agnus Dei- Bizet

Hello Sweets!

As a music major (vocalist), I understand the struggles one may face when trying to learn music inside and outside of vocals lessons. I also understand the challenge of trying to interpret what your vocal professor is trying to tell you. Though your professor(s) may offer phenomenal advice, it is not always easy to relate to their vocal technique or it may not be easy to translate what is being suggested for you to do. From experience, I have often benefitted from vocal advice from my peers. Sometimes they could suggest the same techniques that my professor suggests but because my peers were able to either explain it from a student’s prospective or explain it in simpler terms, I was able to understand it. Here, I would like to document what I have learned, what I am learning, my struggles, my epiphanies, and whatever else that might come to mind by providing videos and text in hopes that this may help you somewhere in your musical journey.

LET’S BEGIN!

Check out the live performance here:
https://youtu.be/4xT4iyto0lY

Korean News (South Korea: Amending Sex Education Guidelines)

(This article is written for academic purposes. The information provided are from a few web sources and conversations with my Korean friends. Sources provided at the end of the article.)

I mentioned in a previous article about South Korea’s modification of their sex education, and I want to expound on this subject a little more. Before my departure from the states, I spent sometime with one of my friends who was born and raised in South Korea (she attended my college as an exchange student from South Korea). I learned a lot from her and I am very thankful for her patience with me as I asked her so many questions about South Korea. During one of our talks, she shared with me her frustrations with the sex education in South Korea. She feels that sex is a topic that is often not discussed openly. My friend shared that she believes all young Koreans should be educated about the consequences (good and bad) of sex and discovering their sexuality. She shared her understanding that many from the older generations feel that talking about sex will only make the youth want to engage in it, but we both feel that everyone should have the opportunity to learn everything about it rather than being an example for someone else to learn from. 

Korean News (South Korea suspends tear gas exports to Bahrain)

(This article is written for academic purposes. The information provided are from a few web sources and conversations with my Korean friends. Sources provided at the end of the article.)

What would you do if you knew you were producing and selling a substance in large quantities that was possibly being misused on human life? Ha, some of you out there can argue that fast food distributors in America are doing just that. Others feel that perhaps the American medical society is also guilty of doing this. All humor aside, South Korea was faced with the realization that they were selling large amounts of tear gas to Bahrain, which was in a very unstable political situation which resulted into many riots and violence. In reaction to the discovers of the consequences of sending large amounts of tear gas to Bahrain, South Korea decided to stop ALL exports of tear gas. Many believe South Korea was concerned with the lack of observation and preservation of human rights.

Death Does Not Always Accompany A Broken Heart. (RQ)

Diamiss from Unknown asks,
“What can I do at this point of no return? My boyfriend of 2 years broke up with me and even though I still love him, I know he is not the same. It feels like we are still who we’ve always been and now we are enemies. That is what it feels like. I know I love him and I will still like to make it work. Is he still worth pursuing? He says we should just be friends. He says he no longer sees me as his girlfriend and sees me more like a sister. How can he see me as his sister when we have been f******  many times!!!? WTF!! I have so many questions, I really hope you can help! I would truly like to know should I move on, how and why? He acts like a different person towards me now and it hurts. Is this break up for the best?”

“One minute we are f****** and the next minute he is cold and very distant and don’t want to spend time with me. He wasn’t busy and he didn’t have a job at the time. And all of a sudden he goes back to school and gets a job and now he don’t want me even though I was there for him when he had nothing. He wants bigger and better things i guess. How did we go from being so passionate with each other to now living without each other? My heart is broken, how can I go on? I hope there is more to life than just broken hearts then death! I hope this is enough information to help you understand where I am coming from?”

Well Diamiss, you do have a lot questions, haha. Thank you very much for trusting me with this topic. A topic that is very sensitive for many people. Before going any further, I would like to remind you that I am not a licensed therapist, counselor nor am I an expert. All my advice comes from my own personal thoughts, opinions, and experiences. Also, keep in mind that this is your life. It does not matter what I or what anyone else thinks. At the end of the day, you are the one who has to live with the choices YOU make, not I. With that being said, I will do my best to answer, and I pray this advice helps you.

To answer what I think is the over all question, I say, you should move on with your life. He has and so should you. If I am reading your words correctly, it appears that perhaps your ex checked out of the relationship way before he said anything to you. He worked on himself and now its time for you to do or continue doing the same. Now, allow me to elaborate. 

Being transparent here, truthfully, your situations hits home for me. This is very similar to my former relationship, so I think I completely understand where you are coming from. My ex told me he thought we should just be friends. He revealed that he loves me but perhaps that love is different, implying he has love for me but is no longer in love with me. Again, I am not an expert but perhaps hearing a bit of my story can help you.

Ewha Woman’s University International Dorm Life (Part One)

Hello, Sweets!
Hope you all have been doing well?

Life in South Korea has been very well so far. I’ve been adjusting well and I’m enjoying the process.

Before I traveled to South Korea, I did my best to research everything I could think of and I learned a lot in the process. What was very difficult to research was specific Korean universities’ life. I found a few YouTubers explaining their dorms and or universities and read a few blogs but unfortunately, I found nothing that really prepared me for my university experience.
(I do not claim to have read every blog and seen every YouTube video dealing with the matter. I am stating that out of the sources I reviewed, I did not find exactly what I was looking for.)

With that being said, I would like to provide information about my university in hopes that this article can be a great help in preparing anyone interested in attending Ewha Woman’s University as an International Exchange Student.

I’m in Seoul! (The Honeymoon is over!)

Hello, Sweets!
I hope all is well with you all?

First, I would like to say, THANK YOU to all of you who are very supportive of me on this journey. I am loving it here in South Korea and I can not wait to experience all that I can.

*This blog post in not intended to speak for everyone, these are my personal experiences. :)*

You know, for the first week it was very difficult for my mind to grasp the concept that I was no longer in America. For me, it didn’t feel like Seoul was any different from my home city back in the U.S. Going to small stores and shops seemed fun and eating new foods seemed adventurous, but nothing stood out as odd (Other than the fact that I was totally ignoring the language barrier).

What Love is (Terza Rima)

What Love Is
(Terza Rima)
This is a poem from my early high school years. It is “an attempt” at a Terza Rima poetic style. A true Terza Rima consists of three-line phrases or stanzas (Tercets). The ending rhymes patterns follow aba, bcb, cdc, etc.

By: Shalandra Royal

Love is happiness with an inherited disorder,
That comes with many prices to pay.
Not may return after crossing its borders,
While many are begged to stay.
As the world turns through its unique sequence,
Most of love’s victims are turned away.
Not thinking of the treacherous consequence,
For love does not care of whom it may spare.
Many are left with great suspense.
One may think to overcome love’s defects is with care,
But honestly love’s disorder will remain everywhere.

Is it Lust, Love, Infatuation, or Attraction? Is there a difference? (RQ)

Brother Bear from Macon, Ga asks,
“How does one know the difference between lust and love, infatuation and attraction, and how do we ignore it?”  

First, I would like to say, “Thank you Brother Bear for giving me my first reader question! I really appreciate you and I hope I give this question a justifiable answer.”

This is a tough question because I truly feel we often will not have one with another. My thoughts are: True Love is lasting. Pure Lust is blinding. Deep Infatuation is consuming. Physical, Spiritual, and Mental Attraction is desired. Now, of course each of these descriptions can be found within the others, but allow me to break it down to show you what I mean. I will start from the bottom and work my way back up.

Your Armor

Your Armor
By: Shalandra Royal
We all know someone who has worked very hard in life just to survive. Sometimes we are those very people to do so. It does not feel good to be on the opposing end of the armor that is often built in the process and this often causes other to begin to build theirs. Then once you are done and you are in it, it can be very difficult to remove it. Beware and Best wishes to you all! 

I am so very proud of you!
Of your strength.
Of your victories.
Of your voice.
Of your mind.
Of your heart…. of what’s left of it.

Overcoming your past to live in this present with a little of nothing…
I am very proud of you.

I’m proud of you…
Your strength is so mighty, that no one can fight it
Your victories of which you defend, are won from within
Your voice is your weapon of choice,
Your mind holds your instrument that sounds supreme
And your heart yet and true, feels only for rent, sometimes?

Be Your Own Cheerleader!

Hello Sweets!

Have you ever felt like no one cared about you, what you were doing, or even cared whether or not you were to live or die tomorrow? When you feel this way, does it bother you? It is alright to say yes. Saying yes does not mean you should be on suicide watch, it is just acknowledging the fact that you are human and you care if someone shows or demonstrates that they care for you and your existence. From my observation, the people who often feel this way are normally the people who invest a lot or desire to invest a lot of themselves into other people. I am one of those people who loves and cherishes friendships. I invest myself into all my close relationships! If I call you a friend, then that means I love you and you are in my heart. If I date you, I do not just date to be together temporarily and find someone else, I date you because I see you in my future and would like to build towards that future. So when I feel that I give and give and receive little in return, I get very upset, broken down, and hurt. It makes me feel like no one cares as much as I care about them. Sometimes, it feels like the world I live in is not real and I am giving my love to people who think I am not worth their love. Then I fall into a spiral and I have to work my way back up. Sometimes the spiral involves self destructing or exploding on some one who may or may not have deserved it!

SO WHAT DO YOU DO!?!? 
You aim to be your Own Greatest Cheerleader!
(Easier said than done, right?)