Motivate 2009

Some say the youth of the world don't know true accomplishment and success until they've endured the long days and nights filled with agonizing hard work and adversity. I say not.

This year for the drumline will not only go down in history amongst ourselves, but it will live on as a legacy throughout the world of drumline across the nation. The groups we once looked up to are now looking up to us..what we've gone through to get to this point has definitely been tough, but we went through it together..the core of us have been drumming together for 5+ years..we grew up together, got our talent from each other, and created such a bond that we knew was special since the first note we played together.

Looking back on the year in the Drumline/Band perspective, i don't think it could have come at a better time. With our field show revolving around the concept of ONE, and how we must be banded as a unit to achieve everything we dreamed of achieving, we were able to show off how far weve come together. The with our Drumline show being motivate, where one person can end up "making a difference for better or worse," I was forced to reflect back to the time when i only dreamed of being on the snare line with Nikko one day. And we achieved the most respect we could have asked for. After our finals performance, not just ordinary people, but also some of the most prestigious and well-known innovators of the drumline world were coming up to us saying how amazing we performed and gave special recognition to the snare line who was one of the best theyve ever seen.

Going into our final performance, we knew this was it. the last time we would do a "shay pray", or give each other that extra boost of courage to go in front of 10,000 people to show them what we can do. stepping into that arena, with people cheering for you alone only made me be proud of how far we've come; together. and with the last note of our final performance, we knew..we felt it..it was the show and the feeling none of us will ever forget..looking up at the crowd seeing 10,000 people give you a standing ovation, all the hard work didnt even matter..we did it guys we did it. after that we didnt care if we medaled, because we had that performance and feeling to remember for the rest of our lives.. but as jeremy came over to me and brett, as he placed the medals around our necks we looked at each other and knew we had done it; together none the less. On the way back to the hotel i stated :

"Iwish i could just capture that feeling, at the end of that show, and just remember it forever."

alex repiled: "its around your neck..that medal holds each of us and what we felt together."

those words i will never forget and have ultimately motivated me to "be the change i wish to see in the world."

So with this season already at an end all i have is a word of thanks to all the seniors and people who have gotten us to where we are today..3rd in the world aint too shabby huh? No long speech is needed to describe what we felt..it was left in the arena that day, and we'll never forget it.