Brown’s senior photo. submitted image

BRYANT POND — “I think the most challenging thing is that I feel I was robbed of my goodbyes,” senior Ainsley Brown said.

With graduation less than two weeks away, it’s all but certain the Telstar senior class will have a different commencement than the classes before them.

One thing that has helped Brown adjust to a lost senior year has been singing, something she’s done a long time.

“I have been singing pretty much since I could talk,” Brown said. “Singing gives me a way to express what I feel when I don’t have the words to do so and it helps me find peace when I’m struggling.”

On top of her vocal talents, Brown also plays ukulele, flute and piano.

She’s auditioned for and attended the Maine District 2 Music Festival every year since fifth grade. Brown also auditioned for Maine’s All-State Festival her first three years of high school and attended it her junior year. She did not audition her senior year because she was on a two-week trip in China while auditions were being held.

She’s been in the school chorus and band all four years of high school and took theatre as a sophomore.

Her wide range of musical talent has proven to be an effective relaxation method during  the stressful times caused by COVID-19.

“Being able to sing and practice my acting during this COVID-19 crisis is one thing that has helped me stay sane and grounded,” Brown said. “When I feel stressed out or overwhelmed, I can just pick up my ukulele, start a practice track, read through a monologue, or start writing a song and it makes me feel much better.”

She said music a healthy way for her to challenge herself and channel her anxiety.

Most people who have a passion for something as strong as Browns does for the arts, has an inspiration, or a person they admire. Brown couldn’t name anyone in particular, but has favorite musicians that span across many different genres. She called the local artists in her community her biggest inspirations.

In the fall, she plans to take her talents to New York City, where she will be majoring in Musical Theatre at The American Musical And Dramatic Academy.

She admitted that New York’s high amount of coronavirus cases has made her nervous about school in the fall but said the academy is taking the necessary precautions to keep students as safe as possible.

Missing out on prom, and having a far from normal graduation, have been tough to digest, but Brown said the things she’ll most upset about are the missed memories she did not make with her classmates down the final stretch of their senior year.

Keeping a regular schedule has helped Brown adjust to academic life amid COVID-19, but admits the adjustment has been difficult overall.

“I have always struggled with reaching out to my teachers for help and is much harder to push myself to do that when I am working from home,” she said.

Mrs. Bennett, Mrs. Colpitts, Mrs. Aldrich, Mr. Eliot, and Mrs. Forman are a few of the teachers Brown wanted to single out.

“My four years of high school have been an amazing learning experience for me. I’ve faced a lot of personal challenges, learned a lot from those challenges, and I’ll always be incredibly grateful for the support I’ve received from the staff at Telstar.”