I believe...

There is one thing that I have believed ever since I was a little boy. I have always believed that everything happens for a reason. To some, this might seem like a cliche response, but it is true. I do not think that when something happens it just happened and we need to leave it as that. I truly believe that when something happens, good or bad, it has taken place for a reason.

Events do not simply take place, but they were already planned out long before we were born and we are either following our path or straying from it. If we stay on our planned pathway (that we know nothing about), our life can go on with very few worries or issues. Obviously, that is not the case because we are human beings and we can make decisions that might shift our pathway a bit.

When I was a senior in high school, I was getting ready to audition for my school’s spring musical, "The Wizard of Oz." I had been doing theatre for many years because I have always enjoyed performing in front of people. Since I knew what to expect, I was confident with my audition piece that I prepared.

A week before the audition, I went to my vocal coach and sang my song for him and he gave me feedback. He asked me what role I wanted, and I told him The Scarecrow. He said to maybe think about switching songs. He felt that if my directors saw that I was energetic and could move around, they might consider casting me as that role because of the Scarecrow’s movements.

So, I switched the songs and I practiced non-stop because I wanted to be prepared and get this role I wanted so badly. One, it was one of my dream roles and two, I was a senior and wanted to make a lasting impression on the stage. As bad as it is, my directors, most of the time, gave seniors a strong role if they were good enough to play the part. So, I felt confident, but a little cocky as well.

I went to my audition, and I felt that I did very well at both the singing and acting portions. The directors even said that my voice had gotten stronger in both singing and speaking. I thought this was a good sign, and I was not worried about my role. That is, until the cast list came out. When they posted the cast list on the office window, my heart sank. A fellow friend and theatre rival of mine got the Scarecrow, and I was stuck as the Wizard.

My heart was crushed. My whole body just seemed to lose energy, and I felt no worth in the theatre anymore. I never expected to get lead roles my freshman and sophomore year of high school because I had not grown as strong yet. But, when I got a lead role my junior year, I felt that the directors must have seen something in me. Instead, they put me in a small role in my last musical. I was furious because I had gotten other main roles in shows long before high school at both my grade school and community theatre. I was confused, angry and heartbroken. However, I still went to rehearsals and tried to remain as positive as I could.

Now, what I am trying to get at with this “I believe that everything happens for a reason” idea is that I felt that I got the Wizard because I was a senior and I really wanted to be there with my theatre friends.

I noticed how much the Scarecrow was on stage (and I would have loved to be on stage for that long), but I felt that I got my part because I had wanted to spend more time with my friends before I graduated. In a way, I felt that this happened because of how much I wanted to be with my friends. Also, after the first rehearsal, the director could tell I was distracted, and I told her everything.

She said that the reason they gave me the Wizard was how strong my voice and stage presence was. She said that no one would have been able to pull it off like me. I do not know if she was trying to be nice or spare my feelings, but she was the director and she knew what she was doing. So, I feel that because I was so confused and upset, this caused the director to see and tell me what was the situation.

This story is a primary example of why I believe that everything happens for a reason. Every little action that we do has some sort of power in deciding our pathway. I could go on with how many times I have experienced this, but that would take me forever to write down. I tell people that things don’t just happen, they happen for a reason, and we need to carefully choose our actions and choices because they can help or alter our pathway.