Just Do It!!!
B?y: Cassi
	(?I'm really sorry abo?ut all the qu?estion marks....I'm? workin on fixing that? please bear with me....)
All too often I ?hear people say, "Oh? I wish I had done that!" or ?"Maybe I'll do ?that - or as least I? hope I will..."  ?People have dreams ?of doing things and voice? those wants and de?sires to do new thin?gs.  I see no ?problem with havin?g dreams - dreams a?re what push us to do? more and to seek bigg?er and better things.?  What I? have a problem with ?i?s people who don't AC?T on their dreams an?d aspirations.  My respons?e to those who don't ?act?  Don't HOPE - ?just do it!
My ?life has always be?en centered around mu?sic.  I can't rememb?er a sing?le day that I didn't he?ar or sing at leas?t one musical note. ? When I started out ?musically that's all ?I did - sing.  My mo?ther introduced me to t?he piano when I was a?bout three helping me? play Twinkle Tw?inkle Little S?tar and Jesus Love?s Me by plink?ing out the individual? notes.  By five I ?decided that I wante?d to learn piano a?nd asked to take less?ons.  My parents i?nformed me we couldn't af?ford piano lessons an?d my mother told me she di?dn't ?have enough time to te?ach me properly.  S?o, outwardly ?I "forgot" about it? and didn't say anythin?g afterward, ?but the thought and desire sti?ll lingered.
A f?ew years after around age seven whi?le channel-sur?fing I cam across a? broadcast of som?e famous violinist.?  The instrument s?ang as his fing?ers glided up a?nd down the strings? and his bow crosse?d them simu?ltaneously.  Af?ter being mesmeriz?ed for the next half hour or ?so I decided that I ?wanted to learn viol?in.  I wanted to be able to ma?ke such beautiful ?music.  I wanted to? touc?h the hearts of othe?rs with that instrume?nt.  M?y desire bur?ned in my heart as I? told everyone I ?could find that somed?ay I was going to pl?ay the violin. ? No one believed me? and so I lost fai?th a?nd didn't pursue the is?sue.
When I was in ?4th grade and wa?nting to join band I ?had to pick out m?y instrument.  My fi?rst choice (of cours?e) had to be the ?drums but my parent?s protested, "No,? too loud!"  So ?my second choice was? the saxophone. ? "N?o, too expensi?ve!"  I still want?ed to learn the saxophone an?d made sure they k?new I was going to lea?rn someday.  ?They didn't b?elieve me.  N?o one did - ?again.  So I ?lost faith and settle?d for the clarinet.?  I was playi?ng an instrume?nt I had ne?ver aspired to play ?before this and was no?t terribly interste?d in continuing with ?it.  After a mere ?four years, I quit?.
My freshman ye?ar of high school ?my parents moved out? of the town we were livi?ng in to go to Wichit?a, Kansas to try ?to find work.  Since? ?it took an hour and a? half to commute, my parents liv?ed up there while my ?brother and I stayed b?ehind, living by ?ourselves.  This a?rrangement w?as extremely str?essful and diffic?ult to deal with.?  Our hous?e was only about tw?o blocks f?rom where we went to? church so I b?egan to walk there once ?or twice a we?ek usually before chu?rch to plink out some? songs on the piano.?  D?oing so helped with ?the stress so much t?hat I frequent?ed the door much mo?re until it e?scalated to an every?day occurance.  I r?ecalled m?y desires to learn to play and? decided? that even if I had to tea?ch myself I was goi?ng to mas?ter the piano.  To mak?e an alr?eady long story a b?it shorter, I have? performed offerat?ories, churches al?l over central K?anas are begging me ?to play for them in th?eir church, profes?sional pianists have? expressed their wi?shes to play like me? (and ironically I? tell them I wish I coul?d play a bit more like? them!!!), a?nd I play each week i?n a praise team that? travels around a ?bit from time to time?.  After 1?4 years or so, I ?have attain?ed that goal.  ?I took my dreams and? desires and acted ?upon them and made them happe?n for myself.
At the ?end of my freshman ye?ar I left Fredonia a?nd moved into "Subu?rbia Wichita" and starte?d at a new school?.  Although I was no?t in the class I sat? in with the band at nu?merous game?s playing my clarinet and? ?after school with the ?Jazz band?.  If I stayed a?fter school for any ?reason then I had to w?ait until about ?six when my parents ?could come get me so I? pract?iced a lot in the band? room.  A?pproximately mid?way through the se?mester the dir?ector approached m?e with a dilemma.  N?one of her curren?t sax players could play a c?ertain solo in the J?azz band.  To mak?e an already lon?g story a bit short?er, I jumped in?, had the sax learned ?in about three hours ?after school one da?y came in the next da?y with the s?olo performance read?y and perfor?med at the next game? that Friday and the? next concert a few w?eeks after that.  I have ?attained that goal. ? I took my dreams and? desires and acted ?upon them and made them happe?n for myself.
At semes?ter that year I moved? to anoth?er school and continue?d to hone my piano s?kills there.  If I ?had any spare time I ?was in the practice roo?m practicing on the p?iano.  This school? had an orchestra of? which I had never hear?d before... A HIG?H school?!?  ?Has an ORCHESTR?A?!?  ?I couldn'?t take the class becaus?e of conflicts with ?required courses bu?t I went to concerts ?whenever I could to li?sten to the beautif?ul (yup you gues?sed it) violin?s.  My drea?m of years past rev?italized itself and? I began to yearn? to play the violin a?gain.  My junio?r year we moved to ?a new church and o?ne of the ladies ther?e gave free violin le?ssons each Wedn?esday. I aske?d her where I might b?e able to find a chea?p violin and her res?ponse was in essence?, "Let me look aro?und."  She ?comes back the next w?eek with a BRAND NEW ?violin for me and sai?d all I had to do ?was work it off by hel?ping her with her cos?tumes (she is also a? seamstress) and? promising to keep? the instrument in g?ood repair and? to not stop playing i?t.  That wasn?'t a difficult promi?se to make.  To ma?ke an already? long story a bit? shorter, I have perfo?rmed offeratories an?d I have played on S?undsay mornings with? the "orchestra"? (hey, we're not b?ig but we sound ?okay!) at my? church when I get the? chance.  After 13 ?years I have attained? that goal.  I took my dreams and? desires and acted ?upon them and made them happe?n for myself.
As I s?tated earlier I am a ?member of the prais?e band at my church.? I sing and piano.?  We have t?wo electric guitar ?members, one bass, ?and a percussionist. ? Before I sta?rted with ?the group my junior y?ear I had been toy?ing with the idea of ?learning guitar but h?adn't really made a ?decision.  When I b?egan with the group m?y mind was made up. ? I was going to learn ?the guitar.  No one? elieved me ?again (you'd think b?y now they'd listen)?.  Well before I left f?or college my youth ?pastor had left h?is acoustic guitar ?sitting out at the ?church and within about a h?alf an hour before ?church one S?unday morning I was ?playing one of our? praise songs; gra?nted it was VERY raw.  W?hile I was at colle?ge the opportunity a?rose for me to watch? an electric guitar ?(and it's amp) for a while its owner w?as indispose?d else?where.  So for that wee?k I researched the internet ?to find gitar help a?nd within the week I ?was playin' the ?blues and other prais?e songs.  ?It got to the point w?here some of my dormmat?es were coming down ?to my room asking if ?I had some guy in ther?e serenading me!  T?o make an al?ready long story a ?bit shorter, I'm ge?tting a guitar in thr?ee days!  I attained my ?goal.  I took my dreams and? desires and acted ?upon them and made them happe?n for myself.
I decided las?t week that my next in?strument to learn is? going to be the flut?e.  The sound is ?so beautiful and pur?e... I think it wou?ld add a lot to the? sound of the orchestr?a and t?he praise team.  I t?old my father that? just yesterday a?t lunch and he didn't ?believe me.  Wow - w?hat a shock.  What he? doesn't realize is ?that my brother's girl?friend has a flute ?she doesn't play and i?s going to give it to ?me.
The mor?al of the story?  ?Don't just hope to do ?something!  If you? have a dream, then? DO something about ?it!  If you don't ju?st go do it then you'r?e never going to make ?it happen.  You hav?e to have the desire to? make it happen for yo?urself.  No one can? make you do it!  Parents ha?ve tried for years ?to make their childre?n to things.  Take b?and for instance.  ?Parents require their childr?en to play instrument?s and what usually ha?ppens is the child wi?ll stick with it th?ough high school and u?nless they have come t?o love the music unc?onditionally, the?y stop? and won't pick the in?strument up? again.  The iron?y of it is those same "reb?ellious" childre?n become parents th?emselves a?nd require their own childr?en to play instrumen?ts.  You must act ?on your dreams!  G?o ahead and play? the violin AND the banj?o!  Go ahead and pla?y the accordian!  Go ahead a?nd play the bagpipes!?  ?Who cares if? someone laughs??!  More often th?an not more will res?pect you for what you? do than wi?ll they laugh.  It ?doesn't matter if yo?u hit wrong notes.?  Even the most seas?oned players mess up a ?note or ?rhythm!  W?hat matters is you ?have taken the step ?to join a group of pa?ssionate people who ?will help you furth?er your abilities if you ask.?  Those around you? will look at your wi?th a new found respe?ct because either you?'ll be doing somethin?g they can't or some?thing they've done al?ready and now how dif?ficult it is.  D?on't just hope or ?dream - just do!  ?ACT!  God will he?lp you!
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