It’s just 5 weeks until our first reunion kicks off on June 6! Each week, we will be showcasing an alum who will be attending Reunion 2014, and the reasons they are excited about coming back to campus. This week, we have Rose-Ellen El Khoury, lover of justice, comic books, and all things patriotic (including the New England Patriots)!
Rose-Ellen El Khoury is a Spice Girl wannabe. But then again, aren’t we all?
I’m a pretty auditory person, ten times more likely to remember something I hear than something I see. When I meet someone new, I’ll forget their name and their face, but their voice will stick with me. In the third grade, I learned both ‘kitchen’ and ‘chicken’ as spelling words by setting them to the same melody. My memories are a little bit like a slide show: random still images and short video clips overlaid with dozens of layers of sound.
So when I start thinking about my time at Wellesley, and about our upcoming reunion, my mind immediately goes to music. Not just the concerts that came to school, although I know the memory of each and every one of them from Santigold to Harry and the Potters will stay with me. My playlist for Reunion has songs like No Doubt’s “Spiderweb,” which I didn’t realize was a great song until I heard it performed by one of the college’s acapella groups. It also has a good number of Billy Joel songs (especially “For the Longest Time,” which I’ll always hear in my head as sung by my friends rather than Joel), the Black Eyed Peas’ “Elephunk” and “Monkey Business” albums, “Wannabe,” by the Spice Girls (thanks to midnight breakfast and WZLY, I can never hear this song without craving smiley fries), every Disney song ever, and much, much more.
The soundtrack to my life has changed since I’ve left Wellesley. To my shock and dismay, the Decemberists don’t fit the way that they once did, and I woke up one day to realize that even though I still didn’t like Coldplay. (“The Scientist” is a gorgeous track, and I love it.)
New bands, artists, and songs have come into my life. Some good, like Of Monsters and Men, some that I like against my will, like “Call Me, Maybe,” and some I can’t imagine living without, like Neon Trees and Janelle Monae (especially ‘Q.U.E.E.N.,’ am I right?). [Editor’s note from Joyce Chen: yes, yes you are so right.] Much as I love all my new stuff, getting ready for reunion has me digging through my old CDs and scrolling through the playlists I made between the ages of 18 and 21, excited to hear music that’s been there these past five years, even if I haven’t played it as much as I once thought I would.
Here’s to creating even more musical memories! Registration for reunion closes May 22nd. Hope to see you all there.
Wellesley College Class of 2009 