Miss Gulley in Manhattan: When Reality Sets In....

I have a tendency to compare my summer last year to this summer and there is no comparison. Last summer was so different. God provided a job for me right away and completely provided for me financially so I could play all summer. This summer God is providing in a different way. He has provided new friends, a church home and two future roommates! I realized that he is paving the way to set my life up here for a while. How do I know this? Well, I know because I am jobless and living in NYC indefinitely. I turned in my resignation papers on Monday and I still don’t really know how I feel about it. Of course, I cried big fat tears because a chapter in my life is officially closed but I’m sort of excited to find out what lies ahead.

Last week was a rollercoaster of a ride. I walked around the city and went about my business with goosebumps most of the time. It started when I went to Hillsong and met Sarah while we were in the overflow room. Hillsong now has seven services and for some reason 2:00 PM was the one I decided to go to. When I got there I was so mad I was in the overflow room and just wanted to go home. I wanted to be where all the action was but I knew I was there for a reason. During the four minutes of meet and greet I met Sarah. We are both from Texas and our stories of what brought us here are so similar it’s ridiculous! I can clearly see the work of the Lord in my life and it just amazes me! Last Tuesday I went to a connect group, a small group bible study and that’s where I met Megan. It was sort of an instant connection and we got coffee the next morning and chatted for a really long time. I also met two girls on Friday for dinner named Rebecca and Jessica. We all met to talk about being roommates come September 1^st. It’s a perfect situation. We are all performers but in different areas, all Christians and we all want to live in the same general area. So, we made it official and will be starting the search for apartments this week. We were connected with each other by a mutual friend, Elizabeth. Her and her husband reminds me so much of Greg and Rachel Ligon because they are so good at connecting people with the same needs. I spent some time with them last weekend and they were so encouraging. Elizabeth looked at me at one point and said “I don’t normally say this but I know you’re here for a specific reason.” I was definitely thankful for that statement because it’s always good to hear confirmation like that. I also had the opportunity to talk to a professor at NYU about the Educational Theatre Masters. If I do the Educational Theatre Masters without the teacher certification it will only take me one year to complete it. That sounds pretty amazing and it’s at NYU!!!! I’m still looking at other programs just to make sure that Educational Theatre is the direction I want to go when it comes to getting my masters.

I think Friday was one of the hardest days for me. I found out that one of my high school choir directors, Joan Davis, passed away. I was so sad about that because she was a beautiful woman who played a huge part in my love for music and passion for singing. She encouraged me and didn’t let me get away with much. Those teachers are always my favorite and she will for sure be missed. On the same day I heard that Colleen Bohrmann was moving up to Central Office and would no longer be at Encino Park. Talk about an emotional day! When I heard the news about Colleen I just felt like, once again, confirmation that I am doing the right thing and supposed to be here. Because, Colleen moved up I needed to resign ASAP so Cindy can have the full time music position for next year. I knew I would end up resigning I just thought it would be in August instead of now. In the midst of all the emotion and shock I was reminded of this verse "Remember not the former things, nor the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; do you not percieve it? I will make a way in the wilderness and a river in the dessert." Isaiah 43:18-19.

Even though I’m jobless I do have a job lead. I had an interview with a company called Education Through Music on Monday. It’s a very interesting company. Fifty percent of NY public schools do not have a music program in place so, ETM’s ultimate goal is to put teachers in the schools that don’t have music and try to get those principals to hire them on as “real teachers” with the NY department of education. I think it’s a great company with a great purpose. I would only work part time which would allow me to take classes, go to auditions or work a second job. I think it sounds perfect! Monday’s interview was only the first round though. It was sort of an interesting interview, I felt like it was an audition actually. There were seven of us in the interview and we all had to present a five minute mini-lesson for a specific grade level. Everyone came from a different musical background so that made all the lessons very interesting. I thought I would find out next week if I was “called back” for the second round of interviews but, I found out today before my acting class that I have a one on one interview with the Program Director next Wednesday at 2:00PM. Yipee!! My week is off to a great start and to make it even better I got to watch Roman Holiday in Bryant Park with my two new friends, Megan and Sarah.

When reality sets in I will be praising my way through this journey. I’m in NEW YORK CITY!!!!! And I’m somewhere over the rainbow where dreams really do come true! I know the Lord is control, he is my provider, he is my refuge in times of trouble and he will never leave me or forsake me or give me more than I can handle.

Love,

The official New Yorker, for now, Miss Gulley in Manhattan

I don't remember where this was but it was an
awesome rooftop bar. I had drinks with my Tango
partner Lawrence last weekend. Don't worry, I haven't
seen him since. LOL