"Pass it on."

If you're reading this I'm sure you know that I am currently living in Cleveland working as a Theatre Education Intern at The Cleveland Play House. I am living alone for the first time ever and needless to say it is indeed very different than living at home. I am definitely enjoying my time alone but it does get very lonely, usually in the evenings when I get home from work and have no one to eat dinner with. I love cooking, although I can't really afford a lot of ingredients, but I imagine that someday I will be able to prepare great meals. I love being able to create my own lifestyle and be able to do things when I want to do them. I like being in charge of what goes on around here. (Which seems obvious because no one else lives here but it feels very different.) I did not like being alone at night but after the first few weeks I've grown accustomed to the sounds of an old building. I am a huge wuss so I still get paranoid from time to time. I am so fortunate to have such great parents who listen to me complain when I call them everyday on my way home from work. I hope that's an exaggeration because I don't think all I do is complain, but I know I do. Most of the time I call just because. I think mom and dad are even getting a little sick of me calling for no reason because no one has anything new to share but sometimes just a voice is enough. I believe I was already aware of how important my family was to me after I returned from France, and while I was there, but it has become increasingly apparent to me how truly fortunate I am to have such great people in my life. I have always had, and still have, everything I need. Somehow my parents managed to find such a delicate balance in raising the three of us, my brother, sister, and I, who are all very different. As I grow up I met more and more people who have not had a life like mine or that of many of my friends from home and I realize how lucky I am. I am still young and learning but I do feel like it brings me back to reality every now and then and makes me recognize that I could not do this without them. My parents are my rock. I feel that I'm somewhere between being a child and a friend still. Some days I'm the child, some days we're friends. I think there will always be a little of both. I'm confident that it will all work out.
I will be here until the end of August when I'll go back to school for what will hopefully be the last year I spend on my undergraduate degree. Only time will tell.
So how did I end up in Cleveland? I applied for several internships this summer, all focused on Theatre Education. I am currently working towards my bachelors in Theatre Arts at SUNY Fredonia and plan to pursue my graduate degree in Theatre Education. I'm not sure where I'm headed yet but I've got a few ideas. All of the internships I applied for were for companies based in New York City, except this one. I am so fortunate to have met such supportive people in my life, most notable my family, and certain professors who have helped me out whenever possible. It is because of one professor in particular, I'm not sure if she'd like to be mentioned so I won't, that I have this internship today. She worked closely with my current boss and I'm sure that gave me a competitive edge. I was rejected from every internship program in New York and while packing my car to head back home for the summer I got a call from the Play House informing me of the great news. At the time this felt like a miracle. I was quite discouraged that I wouldn't get a chance to branch out but had prepared myself for some community theatre auditions at home and receiving this internship at what felt like the last minute was unbelievable. Maybe I'm a drama queen, but the reality of what I am doing has brought me to tears on mulitple occassions. Tears of joy and disbelief. It was only after telling my dad how I felt that I realized that this wasn't a miracle at all. The timeline I had set for myself was not universal. In my mind the day I received this call was the last day I had before my summer at home would start, but to the theatre it was just another day that seemed like a good time to hire summer interns. Another note about the crying: While driving to Cleveland at the end of May, it was the most beautiful weather we'd had in awhile. It was one of those days that you just love to go for a drive. I was listening to Eric Hutchinson's "Ok, It's Alright With Me" and was so overcome with a feeling of happiness that I started to cry. At first this really caught me off guard and then I realized, oh my god, these are tears of joy, this is exactly where I am supposed to be and exactly what I am supposed to be doing with my life right now. I am not a "religious" person by any means but I remember praying for something to show me I was headed in the right direction. I remember wanting so badly to know that I was going to school for the right thing and chasing the right dream. Although there can never be a yes or no answer to things like this it definitely felt like it that day, as it continues to feel that way now. Another thing I am so grateful for.
At the Play House I am currently working on preparing materials for next season as we don't have any productions during the summer months. I have had the opportunity to help teach a few children's theatre workshops and give tours of our building. The Cleveland Play House was founded in 1915, making it the nation's oldest regional theatre company. It has been in it's 300,000 square-foot building for 95-years, since 1927. This is such an amazing place and I am meeting a lot of talented and creative people on whom I am hoping to make a good impression. Through this internship I have also made my first friend in Cleveland, Elicia. She is also an Education Intern with me along with 5 other interns in different departments. We hit it off right away and spend a lot of time together. She is from South Carolina so with both of us being new it made it really easy to become friends and discover the area.
I recently found a part-time job at a local wine bar called Grotto. It is literally a 30 second walk from my apartment so it's perfect for me. I am really glad to have found a flexible job as I only work 20-hrs a week at my internship and am not paid hourly. (Only a small weekly stipend.) Everyone I work with, at both jobs, is really friendly and helpful.
I recently posted a Facebook status saying, "All of the nicest people live in Cleveland." This remains true. While buying stamps to send home a Father's Day card and a sympathy card to a close friend who's grandfather had recently passed I found myself .5 cents short. I was literally digging through my purse and I did not have enough money. I asked if I could use a debit card but I could only do a withdrawal. At this point I probably had about $2.00 in my account so there was no was that was going to work. The woman behind the glass handed me two stamps and said, "Pass it on." For a second I was confused and then I realized she was giving me the .5 cents I needed. She had helped me in what was a small way for her but meant a huge deal to me. Sending those cards was something very important to me and I think she could see that. This isn't about money or cards. It's about seeing the challenges people face and figuring out how you can help, in even the smallest of ways. "Pass it on."

"Everyone needs help from everyone."
-Bertolt Brecht-