It’s Monday morning, halfway through third hour, and suddenly it hits her: the last line of the chorus. She frantically digs through her backpack, all the while repeating the words over and over in her mind.

Don’t forget. Don’t forget.

At last she finds what she’s looking for: the black composition notebook that travels with her from class to class each day. Flipping it open to the right page, she quickly jots down the lyrics before they can escape her memory: No one’s gonna stop us now/ ‘Cause we’re no longer invisible, visible.

For junior Aneliese Peeler, these random bursts of inspiration are not an unusual occurrence. As a songwriter, these moments are what Peeler lives for.

Peeler began writing songs in eighth grade, but music was an important part of her life from a very young age.

As a child, Peeler’s grandfather would often play music for her while Peeler sang along. She began taking piano lessons in third grade, and then began learning ukulele in eighth grade, around the same time she began writing songs. Music also runs in the family; her mom plays the ukulele, and her twin brother, Trecen, plays bass guitar.

For Peeler, songwriting began as a fun, creative outlet where she could blend the two things she loved the most: music and lyrics. Her songs are infused with emotion and mainly revolve around topics related relationships. Oftentimes, however, it is her friends’ experiences that inspire her songs, rather than her own.

“I write a lot of love and heartbreak songs, but I’ve never had that experience before,” Peeler said. “When my friends were dealing with those things, I would write songs without thinking about it, because I would feel that.”

Participating in choir has helped Peeler to further hone her skills. As a member of the Grand Chœur, learning choral structure and music theory has allowed her to enhance her songs by adding new elements such as harmonies. Choir Director Elizabeth Mulkey says that as a student, Peeler’s dedication and willingness to learn have shaped her as a musician.

“She’s always positive and fun to have around,” Mulkey said. “It’s great that she’s well rounded, since she’s singing here [at Sion] and learning a lot of theory with me and on her own.”

Peeler often takes a lesson or two from her family also. She credits her mom as being one of the biggest musical influences in her life, as she was the one who first taught Peeler the ukulele. When Peeler writes a new song, her mom will often be one of the first to hear and critique it, and this can sometimes be frustrating for Peeler.

“Sometimes my mom will say ‘You need to change this’ and I feel like she’s acting like it’s easy. It isn’t easy,” Peeler said. “It’s really hard to change something that you’ve already come up with.”

While Peeler and her family may not always see eye to eye when it comes to her music, she respects and values her family’s opinions, and she says that they have helped her grow and evolve as a musician.

When Peeler thinks about her future, she is absolutely certain that it will revolve around music. Peeler hopes to major in music production in college, and then go on to become a producer and songwriter. Mulkey believes that Peeler has a bright future ahead of her as a musician because of her in-depth knowledge of both choral and instrumental music.

“Many people at this age think they can be a music major but don’t have all of the theory understanding and knowledge. [Peeler] has a lot of that,” Mulkey said.

Through the years, songwriting has become more than just a fun pastime for Peeler; it is something she can’t imagine life without.

“It’s not just a hobby,” Peeler said. “I want to do this for the rest of my life.”