Hello. I played the flute for about 9 years but I quit about a year ago. Yesterday I picked my flute up again and began practicing ( I decided I should join my college's band ) and when I started to play, I was much better than before I quit. Is it normal to play much better after a years rest? I have considered the possiblity that my ears just may have gotten worse, but even so my technical ability has significantly increased.

Has this happened to anyone else? It just seems a bit weird that after a years time that I could play much better than when I used to practice 6 hours a day.

I have found that there is a difference between practicing and playing. If you practice too hard or with too much focus on the technical aspects, you can "miss the forest for the trees" and forget why you play music in the first place. Perhaps beforehand, when you were just practicing, and not playing. (I'm not saying practicing is bad, but too much practicing and not enough playing can get very disheartening.) Now, you might be "playing" and not forcing anything.