Life is a Party

Life is kind of funny. Have you ever noticed that?

For days on end we all go around living life, sometimes without even noticing what we're doing, and then something so entirely peculiar happens that shakes the world up. In my case a number of things have happened lately that just made me sit back and absolutely laugh at myself. And no, I wasn't just laughing at myself for no reason at all.

Recently things have been extremely busy for me, and if you have bothered to open the University Journal or looked on suujournal.com recently you will have noticed how often my name has been popping up in the past two weeks. That, my friends, is because I have been doing story after story for them. In the past seven days I have attended a concert, gone to a film festival, and learned all about the college's chapter of Habitat for Humanity (did you even know SUU had one of those?). It's been blisteringly busy, but I've been having so much fun that I consider the past two weeks something of a party.

Of course, getting the information together for the Habitat story was a bit strange. I had never really sat down and thought about what the organization did, and so I did some research on their website while I was waiting for my contact to arrive. It was intriguing, to say the least, and I was excited by the thought that SUU was going to help the community's poor by building housing. And then I got the depressing news. SUU's chapter is too small to start on that big of projects, but they do offer an alternative Spring Break where they go out of state to do work on other projects. I guess the poor of our community can only hope that eventually SUU's chapter will be big enough to start building houses, and if you want to help out more information is in the Service and Learning Center.

As for my adventures at the concert...Well, that is an interesting matter. The Angeli Duo, two very talented violinists, came to Cedar City and did a master class for local orchestra students before performing that night. It's really cool that the Cedar City Music Arts Association gets so many talented performers to come to Cedar City because it gives the PVA students a change to learn from some of the best in the business through the master classes.

My other assignment was...amazingly fun. I was able to go to the Parowan Film Festival, which is held once a year, and see Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid for the first time. It was an absolute blast to be able to see a movie like that on a big screen, and after I had written my story my friends and I went on a second quest back to Parowan for another night of the festival. Oh yes, I went to the sci-fi double feature and got to see Galaxy Quest and the original Planet of the Apes for only $2. Talk about exciting.

Life here in Cedar City is something of a party, and if you know where to look there is something going on every night. Whether it is a RAP activity or a local service project, the world is full of opportunities for new adventures and new friends. What are you going to do with what you've been given?

SUU Idol

There I was standing up on a stage with a room full of people watching me, and I had no idea what I had been thinking when I signed that paper.

Whether or not you were aware of it, as a part of Welcome Back Week there is a competition going on by the name of SUU Idol. Basically, what happened is that anyone could sign up for an audition, and then you would compete for a spot in the final six. I was there with my friend Laura, who was doing a photography assignment for the University Journal, and supporting my friend Rachel when she performed when it struck me: I could get up and sing something.

One problem. I had nothing prepared. My mind instantly went into a scramble as I tried to figure out what on Earth I would sing, and then Laura leaned over and told me to just get up and sing “Amazing Grace.” With that it was decided. Taking a deep breath I snuck back to the table and signed up for the competition. The girl smiled and handed me a paper with my number on it, and my fate was sealed. There was no backing out. I was doomed.

Almost instantly my upset stomach—the plague for the past week—began acting up again, and I disappeared for the next few minutes in hopes of dealing with that. When I walked out they were three people away from me, and with a nervous sigh I took my seat in the front row. Before I knew it I was up on stage introducing myself to the four judges with a nervous grin. I've never been so embarrassed before in my life, but I was determined to persevere. Taking a deep breath I opened my mouth and began to sing.

For the next minute or so all eyes were on me as I sang the one verse, and it was quiet enough you could hear a pin drop. I was worried that I had botched it. When I was finished the judges gave their critiques, and one of them just...hit me. Isaac, the Simon of the competition, said that my rendition made him want to believe in something. That is the highest form of compliment possible, and I was grinning like an idiot when I got off stage.

I didn't get sent on to the next round, for one reason or another, and I'm okay with that. I was just glad that I at least tried, and that I was able to do so well with no preparation. That kind of opportunity is just one of the many wonderful things that have happened to me here at SUU, and I am so glad I decided to come here. This is where I belong.

Now it is your turn. Go out there, take risks, and get involved. You never know what could happen, but you should at least try.