alwaysryder

[alwaysryder]

First Love

I have not had a first love. I am still waiting for the right guy for me. I know I cannot expect to find the right one on the first try. I will not seek him out, instead I will wait patiently. I can trust that there is a plan and when the time is right we will come into each other’s lives.

I am awaiting love. I know love is not the butterflies in one’s stomach, weak knees, a fast heartbeat….love is sacrificial, enduring, forgiving. I don’t want superficial, physical, temporary love. It is worth waiting for the real thing.

[alwaysryder]

First Day of College

I step onto campus, map in hand, and a backpack full of expensive textbooks. As a commuter, I have not spent the last few days familiarizing myself with what will be my new surroundings. I double check my schedule and head off to my first class. I walk in circles looking for the building that should be right next to the arts building, after the second time around I realized I was at the arts and science building instead of the arts building. I arrive in the building and wander around the halls searching for the room number 456. I finally find the class five minutes late. Thankfully the professor was gracious enough to understand my plight. I was glad to escape the embarrassment by blending into a crowd of strangers on the way to my next class. I had enough time to eat lunch and still get to my class ten minutes early.  I sat in the empty room watching the minutes tick by. I wondered where the professor and other students could be, since I was sure I was in the right building. Finally I get up to see if I have made some mistake. However, my paperwork confirms that it is the right room and class. Fortunately another professor asked if I needed help. He took me to his office and personally called the register to check on the class. They told him that the students should have gotten an email telling them that the professor was in Japan and class was canceled. The professor relayed the message gently, explaining that professors send updates through email and it will help to check them before class. He made sure I didn’t need anything else before returning to his own work. That was the end of my first day. It could only get better from there and it did. After that I made sure to check my emails and scout out my classes before the first day. Little lessons can make a big difference.

[alwaysryder]

First Graduation

It’s hard to believe I had never been to a graduation ceremony, outside the ones held at church for the homeschoolers there. I knew what happened at them, but I had not ever attended one.  For these reasons, during junior year, when I was asked to usher I was unsure of what the role entailed.  The principle explained that a boy from my class and I received the honor of ushering the graduates to their seats and indicating when they were to stand and receive their diplomas.

I was flattered to be given such a high honor, but I was also nervous.  It is funny to look back on the day, considering I was less worried at my own graduation. I tried to remain clam as I stood adjacent to the gymnasium doors. We began with the music leading the graduates through the arch into the crowded room.  We walked in unison and nodded in unison, cuing the class at each section appropriately. The entire ceremony went off without a hitch. It seems that I needed a reminder not to fear the unknown.

[alwaysryder]

First Time out of the Country

 I had traveled to Florida, Texas, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Virginia, and New  Jersey. However, I had never been to a foreign country. At 13, I received the opportunity to go on a mission’s trip to Athens, Greece.  My best friend at the time, her mother, my mother, and I all passed the application process.  I was ecstatic to be going on my first mission’s trip and fist time out of the country.

After sending letters to our family and friends and fundraising for months, we made our goal in time. On Friday we were scheduled to take off from Chicago, O’Hare to arrive in eighteen hours with layovers.  I was thrilled with the accommodations of a national flight. They had in-flight movies and little kits containing ear buds, a toothbrush, socks, and a small felt blanket. Another exciting factor was that we flew across the International Date Line making travel there two days and the return trip one day.

Once we arrived, we were whisked off to the mission complex. I stepped out of the Van to wave of heat, a bright sky, a bright blue-and-white striped flag with a cross in the left corner, and a sign welcoming us in Greek and English. I took a moment to look down at my feet, making sure they were planted firmly on the ground….Greek ground. I will always remember this trip. I was so excited to be in another country, but in the end I found that the most important thing was not the differences separating me from those in Greece. What really matters are the things that connect me to the people there. 

[alwaysryder]

First Job

I worked for my grandparents and parents when I was younger. They taught me the meaning of work. My grandpa was one of ten kids in a farming family, He worked every day of his life and passed his work ethics down to my aunt and mother. Both of them own their own businesses, where the work never truly ends. On weekends when my mother’s salon closed down we would clean the whole establishment top to bottom. We also washed the dishes, folded the laundry, and filed charts.  When I turned 16, I began receptioning during the night shifts. I worked in the spa all through high school and still hold the position.

However, my parents considered my first real job to be the directing position at Morgan Township. It is my first job where my boss is not a parent. It is my first job where all the responsibility falls on me. I am ready. I have learned what a good employee does and does not do, how to work hard and efficiently, how to deal with problems between the kids, parents, and other employees. This first job can open many doors to the future if I continue to do my best each day.

[alwaysryder]

First Tooth Pulled

I was never afraid of the dentist. I was almost eager to go, because I knew that afterwards I could pick a treat from the treasure chest in the lobby. When I was younger I always prided myself on reporting that I had zero cavities. Although my teeth were clean, they were not straight. Mom and dad saved up to get me braces.

I had an overbite; the only way to fix it was to pull four teeth on the same day. We traveled the hour it takes to get to our family dentist. I was tense with anticipation and fear. I was afraid of the horror stories everyone told about needles and the pain of having teeth pulled.

“Go ahead and lean back and relax…” The hygienist words were easier said than done. “We are going to pull two teeth today.”

“Two?” I asked feeling a little relieved. “I thought I needed four pulled.”

“Let me check your chart.” She said, bustling out of the room for a moment. “Oh, sorry about that, we do need to pull four.”

I sighed as all the fear returned. The procedure didn’t take long. They numbed me, pulled the teeth, packed me up with gauze, and a prescription for the pain. I went back to Valpo to work on cleaning the stage and back rooms at Morgan Township. It was a long day. My mouth did hurt, but I learned that fear of the unknown can be worse than the thing you are afraid of.

[alwaysryder]

First Trip to the Ocean

The first time I ever saw the ocean was when my parents took me to Atlantic City. I was three and we stayed in a hotel right on the shore. Every day I would grab my navy blue swim suit spangled with golden stars and jump into my parent’s bed.

“Ocean”, I would yell. “Ocean!” Although my parents said it actually sounded like, “O sin O sin!” This would continue until they woke and complied with my wishes. Each day was filled with covering me in sunscreen, running across the hot sand, and splashing in the salty waves.

I do not remember that vacation, but my parents have told the story again and again. I was their little mermaid. I loved to sing and swim just like Ariel. I don’t swim much anymore, but I love the calm feeling of sand between your toes, the sound of the waves washing up on the shore, and the sun setting above the watery horizon.

[alwaysryder]

First Cooking Lesson

When I was a little in the beginning of December I traveled to my grandma’s house. Her kitchen is ready before I arrive. The countertops are covered with ingredients and baking tools. Flour and sugar in Tupperware containers, chocolate chips, cooling racks, sticks of butter, baking powder, a huge jar of Crisco, and cookie cutters shaped like Christmas trees, angels, and stars were scattered around. She told me were making Christmas cookies for the family.

Several hours later we emerged from the kitchen covered in flour.

“How’d it go?” My grandpa asked.

“We made sugar cookies, and chocolate chip, and no bakes…you have to try them.”

“I will, Bud, I will.” He said giving me a smile and ruffling my hair. The cookies were various sizes, covered in sprinkles, and several were too gooey or too burnt to truly enjoy, but they were gobbled up by the family without complaint.

[alwaysryder]

First Drive

When I was old enough my family piled into car and drove over to high school parking lot.  Once there dad moved out of the driver’s seat and threw me the keys. I idled for the majority of the next half hour. That was the first time I drove, in the same place I learned to ride my bike. Just like biking this activity would become second nature to me.

[alwaysryder]

First Play

My dad was not exposed to the theatre until he went to college. After seeing a production of Don Quixote, he became enthralled with the arts. When he had me, he decided to get me involved at an early age. In third grade I auditioned for the first time. I was so nervous I could hardly even squeak out “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” when they requested me to sing. However, I didn’t let that stop me. I had already been bitten by the theatre bug and I continued taking classes at the Community Theatre, and participated in thespian groups at Calvary (Calvary Kids) and Liberty (ACTS). Soon it became more than a passion:acting became second nature to me.

I never lost that passion. My hard work paid off when I was rewarded with the role of Elaine Harper in “Arsenic and Old Lace”. I was the love interest; the director believed in my abilities and helped push me to do my best in the role. The cast was great, always encouraging and balancing work and fun.

I have fond memories of that play that help me pursue my dreams in the present. I have a theatre minor and help co-direct the high school and middle school productions at Morgan Township.

[alwaysryder]

First Crush

My first crush was a very good friend of mine. We grew up together, celebrating birthdays, holidays, and summer vacations with each other’s families. Our siblings played together as well. He understood me, since he was homeschooled too. I couldn't spend time with him without smiling and laughing until my sides hurt.

Sure he was cute, with dark brown eyes, short brown locks, and a tall strong frame. However, what I admired the most about him was his strong faith. He was a committed Christian, living out what he believed.  He was continually growing in his relationship with his savior and encouraging those around him.

I will probably never see him again; we have gone our separate ways. I stayed home, commuting to Valparaiso University. He is going to a university on the east coast.  He will begin his life, and follow his dreams, but I will always admire him and look for his qualities in those close to me.

[alwaysryder]

First day of Public School

As a homeschooler, my friends had referred to public institutions as “regular school”. I was by no means isolated. I was part of the Community Theater, various youth group activities, co-op, and national mission’s trips. I had friends from public school and home school. However, none of these things helped prepare me for the shock I had on my first day freshman year.

After nine years of lessons at home, I was entering Morgan Township High School. I knew only one person, a girl from church, and not well. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be at Morgan or if I really wanted to go to public school at all. I had wandered these halls once before to see where my classes were and to decorate my locker as well as practicing opening it.

Eight periods of new faces, new teachers, new experiences, new instructions, new rules…everything was so different. Timed tests to gauge what you already know about the course, permission slips, assigning books, school agendas, 4-minute passing periods,  gym, cafeteria food…none of these were at all like my school experiences before. I was used to getting up at 8:30 to eat breakfast and get dressed. I would spend the day doing chores and homework sometimes two whole days’ worth in order to be able to spend the next day at my grandparents or at a museum. Now I would rise at 6:30 and be ready for my parents to drive me to the school outside our district.

After a long day of not knowing exactly what to expect, triple checking every room number, and innumerable attempts at opening my stubborn locker it was finally lunch time. I scanned the cafeteria, dark green lunch tray in hand. Students huddled around in little groups, the sounds of laughter and conversation filled the air.

“Cassy, you can sit with us.” I turn to see Katie, the girl from my church. She has blonde hair and kind blue eyes hidden behind silver rimmed glasses.

“Oh thank you…” I say relieved.

“No problem.” She replies leading me to a round table. On the far side sat two red haired girls talking over an open notebook.

That was the turning point in my day and my high school experience. I didn’t know then that my first friends would become not only my best friends, but also my lasting ones.

[alwaysryder]

First Scar

I spent a lot of my childhood at my father’s side due to my mom‘s travels for work. It was assumed that daddy’s little girl would turn into a tomboy. In my case, however, this was the furthest thing from the truth. I was the daughter of a salon owner and cosmetologist which for me required braided hair styles, painted nails, and pretty sun dresses.  My father did teach me to ride a bike. We lived on a busy road so he would pack me and my pink-and-white bike up and drive to the nearest school parking lot. Once I grasped the basics, I would ride in circles around the light posts in wide sweeping figure-eights. One day as the sun began it’s descent, he called to me “Try with no hands!”

“What?!?” I gasped; sure I had heard him wrong. He repeated the direction assuring me that after I tried it we could go home. I took a deep breath. I never was a risk-taker.

Slowly I raised my hands from the handle bars, for a moment I was fine until I cut sharply past a light post. I panicked, lost control, and as my family would say ‘kissed’ the pavement. My knees and hands were bleeding and I spit gravel out of my mouth. Hot tears stung my eyes as my dad lamented “Ok, we can go home now.”

The good news is I did ride my bike again, but never without hands. I did not learn to take risks that day. Perhaps that is a lesson I still need to learn, but I did learn to toughen up and try again a couple days later. If I ever forget this all I have to do is look at the small white scar on my right wrist.

[alwaysryder]

First team sport

The first team sport I ever played was soccer. It was set up in the gym at Liberty church. My co-op group had gathered in a circle to listen as Mrs. Hinkley explained the rules and divided  us into teams. I waved at my friends on the other side of the court before Mrs. Hinkley blew her whistle. I ran so hard I was doubled over gasping for breath. I didn’t score any goals and my defense was just as bad as my offense, but I learned about working with others and always giving 110%.

[alwaysryder]

First Day of School

I was once a five year old girl with long blonde curls and clad in a red, 101 Dalmatians dress running down the stairs, my parents close behind. I stopped only after I got there…my school room. A little section of our basement equipped with a shiny silver pencil sharpener, a little pink desk, and a white board with my name on it. The books from Calvert stood in a stack in the corner of the room, along with blocks, play dough, crayons, and a huge stack of construction paper. I was homeschooled. Over the years my mom taught me reading, grammar history, social studies, physical education, and Bible Study, while dad taught me math, spelling, science, composition, and geography.

[alwaysryder]

First Memory

My mother holds me cradled to her breast, wrapped in a pale green afghan. The old oak rocker creaks, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. As dusk falls the image fades captured only as a photo tucked away in an album on a shelf. I don’t remember the scene; I don’t remember the day, or the year. I remember the tune though. A soft melody sung just for me. “Go to sleep, go to sleep. Go to sleep little baby. Go to sleep, go to sleep. Go to sleee-eee-eep.” The hushed rhythm lulls me even now. One day I will sing my mother’s lullaby for my children creating new memories for them.

[alwaysryder]

Firsts: Life Lessons By Cassandra Santner

Who are you? What is your earliest memory? What was your first day of school like? Do you have a first love? What experiences make you who you are today?

  I am not like you and you are not like me, but somehow we share a lot in common…

Everyone has many unique experiences.  This is the great thing about firsts; we all experience them at some point in time. My hope is that in sharing my memories it will remind you of your own experiences and that you can share with me in the journey.