Time to pick up the cello again

I've always thought that the cello has the most pleasant sound of the stringed orchestral instruments.  Ironically, it was my rapid progress on it in sixth grade that convinced my orchestra director that I should switch to the bass.  He said I'd be doing him a favor, as there weren't any other bassists waiting in the wings for the high school orchestra.  I hesitated, reasoning, "The cello has such a great sound.  Besides, do I really want to lug a bass around?"  Although playing the bass for 10 years paid off in a number of ways--jazz band experience, good orchestra chair placements, getting accepted into several ensembles, rapid advancement, due, in part, to less competition than I would have had as a cellist or violinist, and a music scholarship--I still think sometimes about how my life might have been different if I'd stayed with the cello.  One piece that makes me wish I'd continued with it is Mark Summer's "Julie-O."  When I hear Summer's performance or The Turtle Island String Quartet's version of it, I think, "It's worth relearning to play the cello just so I can play this piece."  It's a striking, memorable, bowed and pizzicato melody that's challenging to play but well worth the effort.  It's no wonder that Summer smiles while he plays his own piece.