This I Believe

               The other day I was having a conversation with my grandmother about my decision to major Performing Arts and U.S. History in college. She responded to my statement with a puzzled look and asked, “Why? Why would you do that?” My grandmother and I have always been close and this was not the response that I expected. I simply responded that those two things encompass what I love. I love acting. I love singing. I love learning. I love history. I love stories. It’s what I love. So, why was it so hard for her to understand that? Why is it that I can’t do what I love? If you go looking for the answer to this question, you won’t find it. This got me thinking about what it is that I believe; always do what you love. If you can wake up every day with a smile on your face, you’ve done what you love.

                I guess I haven’t always thought in this way, though.  I used to think that what made my parents happy was what would make me happy. For so long I lived life by pleasing others. I told my parents that I wanted to be a doctor, because that is what they wanted. I strived for good grades in school, not because I wanted them, but because my parents did. I morphed into this perfect child, not because it was the person I actually was, but it was the person my parents wanted me to be. Then, I found theatre.  Theatre is this wonderful place where exuding your freedom of speech is at its highest. In theatre you encompass a completely different being and lose yourself in an author’s words. The amount of lives to recreate and characteristics to express and stories to tell are never-ending. It allows you to be whoever you want to be. This is what I love. This is what I plan to do until the day I die.

               Do what you love. That is my philosophy. Make your own standards and do what you love to make yourself happy. When you live your life to please others, you are not living your life the way it is meant to be. Ultimately, you are the one who makes your decision. In this beautiful country we have been given the opportunity to choose. We are the ones to dictate what we do. We are the ones who decide our future, not anyone else. We are the ones who do what we love.