NWC grad learns from difficult year

Not only does music “hath charms to soothe the savage breast,” as playwright William Congreve stated, but it also helps when you are recovering from chronic illness and surgery.

At least that is what Northwest Christian High School senior Joshua Sampson would say. The quiet but articulate 18-year-old graduated last Saturday after a tumultuous and painful senior year.

Sampson became ill in the spring of 2006 with a chronic colon disease. After a bout of strong medication that damaged his bones, he had reparative surgery on his hip in the fall of 2006.

Amazingly, he missed school only for doctor visits. He was on crutches through January and continues with physical therapy to rebuild lost muscle tone.

When asked about his difficult year, Sampson says: “If you put all the problems in the world in a pile and had to choose one, you’d probably choose your own. You have to take your situation and learn from it, and you learn by going where you have to go.”

He also says his illness “led to a life of the mind.”

“Because I couldn’t do a lot of regular stuff, I signed up for AP (Advanced Placement) literature and really got into Shakespeare, Dickens and Milton,” Sampson says from his home in Colbert. “I also focused more on my music.”

A student of guitar since the age of 5, Sampson still takes lessons at Learn to Burn on Garland Avenue and plays acoustic, electric and bass guitar. He can play jazz, blues and rock ‘n’ roll.

“I believe listening to music makes you a lot better player,” he says. “I don’t try to sound like anyone I hear. When you play, it’s unique because it’s you.”

Sampson also writes music, but he is quick to point out that he is not a writer of lyrics and he doesn’t sing. He has performed for the men of the Union Gospel Mission and is on the worship team at First Assembly of God Church, which he attends with his mother and stepfather. He also plays on the worship team at Northwest Christian.

Sampson also performs with a group of guys from Northwest Christian who recently performed a benefit for Invisible Children in association with Mt. Spokane High School at the Service Station. Invisible Children are the children of Uganda who have been forced to fight in a civil war between the Ugandan government and the Lord’s Resistance Army, a rebel militia waging battle against the government.

“We watched a video about it at school. It’s a really good cause. We’re not really a band. We were just jamming one day, and someone heard us and asked us if we wanted to play at this benefit. And we said, ‘Yes,’ ” he says.

Sampson’s plans for the fall include college somewhere locally. He is considering the music program at Spokane Falls Community College as well as Whitworth College.

Sampson, who has attended Northwest Christian Schools since kindergarten, says he will miss the people but not the drama of school.

“A small school is like a small town. Everyone knows everything about you. I have a very sagacious mom, and she has helped me through some of the pettiness. I have learned, though, that people are people and our vices don’t cease because of our environment,” he says.

When asked what he would like people to know about him, Sampson is quiet for a moment, then says:

“I’m not just a person who plays guitar; there are other sides to me. When you go through a storm in life, it makes you think. You stay tough and you don”t give up.”