i sit next to this girl in orchestra...and she looks like i used to look, her face is narrower, but her body is small and her uniform matches mine (black a lot, long sleeved tee shirts) and she's pretty good at the cello. i can tell she doesn't practice. so tonight i picked up my flute for the first time in weeks (i don't practice much anymore) and played through a modern piece (Syrinx by Debussy) pretty well...I like "Danse de La Chevre" by Hoenegger more, but i'm having difficulty. They're both fantastic pieces, and I sincerely regret not giving them more time at the start. Now it's late and i Don't have the time to give =(. But the girl in orchestra...she's a bit better than I am at cello....(I practice cello ALL DAY LONG), but I've begun to find the tranquility in flute playing and piano playing and even guitar playing that i lacked. Practicing the flute is really hard work at the level I am at, but it makes it so much more fun when you can nail something. I said to my flute teacher that I felt like it was stupid to be practicing flute, when I can barely hear the improvement in my sound anymore...and she told me that she could hear the decline in it from a lack of practice. Now I see that she's right. It's fun to be a developing cellist, but it's so obvious when I improve; there's so much to be learned. But flute has become about expression and dynamics. I think I have the potential to be the best flutist in my school. Maybe not quick in the fingers, but my vibrato is awesome....and the girl next to me reminds me of my wasted potential. And so I practiced tonight because my face was looking long in the mirror, and I blew out my voice at jazz choir singing alto on the break of my voice. I want to be a music teacher. I really honestly do. I hope I don't waste that potential.