marble

My class went to Washington D.C. for a field trip this past Friday. Every time I go to D.C. I am amazed at how many things I haven't yet seen, but more importantly, how many things I see differently the second or third time. This time, as we toured the Capitol building, I was really struck by the marble statues that decorated the greater part of each room we saw. If you stood close enough, you could even see the veins on the statue's hands. Now think about that for a moment. Out of a very hard block of stone, an artist chipped and chiseled until he had created the image of a person so detailed you could see the veins in its hands and so life-like that it looked as if the person had just been standing there and was suddenly turned to stone by the White Witch. These artists are truly amazing. If these external representations of man leave me in such awe, how much more amazed should I be when I look at the One who made man himself and gave man all these awe-inspiring gifts? How great is our God?

halfway down

A. A. Milne was an excellent poet who took time to appreciate the simple things in life. I've been so caught up in all my responsibilities that I haven't had time to enjoy each and every aspect of life, especially the simple things. This is one of my favorite poems.

Halfway down the stairs
Is a stair where I sit.
There isn't any other stair
Quite like it.
I'm not at the bottom,
I'm not at the top;
So this is the stair
Where I always stop.
Halfway up the stairs
Isn't up and isn't down.
It isn't in the nursery,
It isn't in the town.
And all kinds of funny thoughts
Go running round my head:
"It isn't really anywhere!
It's somewhere else instead!"

Adeventures in Indiana - part four

Wow, I'm really tired. Today was the big day. I had so much hairspray in my hair that my hair was hard and, after washing it twice, there are still hairspray flakes in my hair. We had informational meetings in the morning, the dreaded three hour audition and tours in the afternoon. I have mixed feelings about the day. The campus was just as beautiful as yesterday. It was voted 11th most romantic college in the country. It was very relaxed and never had the usual rushed, noisy campus feel. The program sounds amazing. Along with great classes and teachers, dance majors are required to work with costumes, sets and lighting. The performance hall seats 2,000 and it's gorgeous. Performance opportunities include tours in Russia and China. The audition classes were hard, but not unreasonable. We first took a class with seniors. Then we took a class with the sophomores. I didn't do very well in the first class, partially because of nerves and partially because the teacher taught a really fast-paced class. I danced much better in the second class. I also liked the teacher of the second class better. All six of the full time faculty passed through the classes, but none of them stayed through all of either class. Admission is decided by majority vote from the faculty. About 250 students audition each year, but only about 25 attend Butler as dance majors the next fall. Butler accepts more than 25 because not everyone who is accepted chooses Butler. But, that still means I don't have a great chance of getting in. I'm starting to have all the "I should have..." thoughts, but my mom is very graciously reminding me that it's all in God's hands and that I may not be accepted to Butler simply because God has a better plan.

Here are a few more pictures...



The Performance Hall



Butler Bulldog Dressed for the Arts

The Amount of Metal in My Head

Foods Dancers are Never Supposed to Eat, But I Did :D

Random Note: During the first informational meeting, my amazing green pen started leaking all over my hands! Of all the things I anticipated gonig wrong, this was not one of them. Mom started passing me Wet Ones under the table from her purse and I spent the next couple hours trying to scrub my hands unnoticibly. It was very interesting, but it turned out okay. By the time we reached the audition, it had faded considerably.

Adeventures in Indiana - part three

Today has been quite a long day.
The lack of sleep really started to get to me this afternoon. I fell asleep until 7:30pm at which point, my mom had already tried to wake me several times. She has been extremely patient and supportive throughout this trip. We decided we should go find dinner. As we began to look around, we were reminded of our trip to Missouri last summer. Most everything had already closed for the evening. We eventually decided on Cracker Barrel and both got some excellent pancakes. Now, we're back at the hotel. Meeting with Emi, has definitely calmed some of my nervousness concerning tomorrow. Just getting to look around the school and know where I'll be tomorrow releases some of the "unknown" thoughts. She was very sweet and answered all of my questions about classes, teachers, etc. The campus and the program seem very nice. Many of teachers have excellent connections with ballet companies nationally and internationally. This provides for amazing performing opportunities. I am starting to get excited about taking class tomorrow. Hopefully, I will be able to maintain the excitement and just enjoy the day tomorrow. Even if I never come back, tomorrow is an excellent opportunity and I want to make the best of it.

Here are a couple more random pictures...

Our Room

Purple Happiness

Beautiful Building Across the Street

The Pyramids



goodnight :)

Adeventures in Indiana - part two

Well, my mom and I got up at 5:30, drove to the airport, waited/attempted to sleep, finally boarded the plane, flew to Indiana, found our rental car, got frustrated with the GPS, and then...
            WE MET EMI!!!!
(My ballet teacher gave me the names of several students he had previously taught who now attend Butler. I spoke to all three of them. One of them was able to meet up with my Mom and I.)
So, we met Emi at Taste for lunch. I asked her lots of questions. She then showed us around the campus. It was beautiful. :) She did say the food wasn't great, but, other than that, I really like everything I have seen so far. After touring the campus, she brought us to her dorm. Then we left Butler and found our hotel. Now, I'm sitting on the hotel bed trying to stay awake and finish some of my homework.
Here are a few pictures...



Adventures In Indiana - part one

This morning we will leave our house at quarter to six. I am finally packed and really quite nervous. I've been struggling with trusting that God has a plan and it's not based upon my actions or performance. I have a history of being exceedingly nervous at auditions and this fact is weighing much too heavily on my thoughts. Thank the Lord for my amazing parents, grandparents and friends. Throughout this week many of them have frequently reminded me of the truth of resting in Christ and truly casting all of my worries on Him. Also, my weekend motto is: I'm Going To Butler!!! ...just for Megan :)

a creator

When young children are asked to present a topic to their class, they are often required to include information about the inventor of their topic. When students study literature, they are required to study the author of their current piece of literature. Studying the author provides the student (and the teacher) with a much better understanding of and appreciation for the work. With any piece of art, visual or performing, a study of the artist is required. Each display in each museum contains a plaque with an artist's name, the creator of the piece. If any prestigious museum were to hang a new painting on it's wall and the plaque were to say: "No Creator, Came About Via Spontaneous Generation", the world would cry "ludicrous" and investigations would immediately ensue. Yet the most beautiful piece of artwork, mankind, is thought to be created in just this way. How can we understand so fully the necessary role of a creator in every other aspect of our lives and ignore it so completely when it comes to ourselves? How can we require information on any other creator and reject any information on our own Creator. We have an enormous amount of ignorant pride. We are power hungry. If we acknowledge that a being created us, then we acknowledge that a being is greater and more powerful than us. But think about the artwork one more time. Do we think less of a painting because we know it has a creator? No, in fact many paintings increase in value when they are discovered to be a creation of a celebrated artist. We don't even try to think of the painting as being more powerful than the artist, but that doesn't make the painting any less awe-inspiring. When we discover that we have been created by the almighty God, our understanding of our own value should increase exponentially. We have been created by the most amazing artist. ever. Once we understand this truth and begin to investigate our creator, we will have a much better appreciation for His art, a much better appreciation of ourselves and our purpose: to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. We recognize the necessity of creators and require the study of them in pieces of art. Can we put those pieces together and recognize the necessity of our Creator and require the study of Him?

art and my life :)

      The value of art has been a debated topic since the beginning of time. Often it is determined unessential to survival, but important simply to aesthetic views. In this world, and specifically in my own life, art contains much more meaning than just a pretty picture. Art is the tool that I have used to develop into the person I am today through evaluation and expression. Just as any building cannot be created without the proper tools, I would not be the human being I am today without these significant instruments. The art of literature is my tool for evaluation and the art of dance is my tool for expression.
      A Raisin in the Sun’s Beneatha Younger found a passion that changed her life. The play begins with her struggle to fit into white American culture. During the play, she discovers that embracing her African heritage is more suited to her personal interests. She quickly developed a strong love for the African culture and therefore changed her ideas about her future to suit this passion. She began to dream of going back to Africa. I began my athletic endeavors by following in mother’s footsteps with roller skating. Several of my friends took ballet classes and they served as my introduction to ballet. Watching a ballet on television left me further intrigued. I began to dream of becoming of a ballerina and this shaped my ideas about my future and the following steps I took to get there.
       Henry Higgins devoted his life to his passion for speech and dictation. He knew and studied his passion constantly, but neglected his relationships with those involved in it. Before the curtain closes on Pygmalion the audience witnesses a development and change in this great character as he learns the importance of relationships in his work and in his life. Ballet is my passion. Like the well-known professor, I tend to get involved in perfecting my steps and body lines in ballet and neglect my relationships with the other dancers. Not only does this affect our ability to work as a team, it is also influences the quality of the acting element in ballet. The better we understand each other, the better we will be able to relate to one another as dancers and as characters in a storyline or forces in an emotion.
       The middle section of Jane Eyre covers Jane’s first stay at Thornfield Hall. During this time she falls in love with Mr. Rochester. While she acknowledges this developing passion inside of her, she does not discover how much of herself this passion becomes until she leaves him. By the end of the story, she discovers how pointless her life is without Mr. Rochester. She returns to find him traumatically changed, yet they both vow to spend the rest of their lives together. Throughout my life I have devoted many hours to the athletic art form of ballet. Yet even when I began to dedicate eighteen hours a week to ballet I didn’t comprehend the passion and emotion involved in my obsession until my junior year. With my transition to a classical, highly academic school and new obligations at home, balancing responsibilities became a heightened challenge. Being stretched in more directions than ever before also released an overload of emotions that I have not been used to expressing. Translated into my dancing, I began to understand the importance of the dancer’s connection with their role and the audience. While I had always known that literature was my tool for evaluation, I now learned that dance was my tool for expression. Like Jane, a new environment acted as a foil which intensified my understanding of the passion I have and continue to invest in ballet.
       Positively developed and adapted literary characters inspire readers to do likewise. These particular characters are only a few of the many characters who encouraged me to evaluate my experiences. In the same way, ballerinas hope to inspire their audiences through the art they express. Beneatha Younger, Henry Higgins and Jane Eyre have helped me to grow as a person. I hope that others will grow through the stories I tell, on and off stage.