Every time Xhilaration prepares to perform, Mr. Walker tells his students to “Go for it.” His famous saying is what he shares with all of us before every performance, but this time, it was different. I had dreamt of being in a varsity show choir since I was in the 5th grade. This was it. I was doing what I loved with people I loved. We wanted to win it all. Xhilaration spent countless hours of practice getting ready for this moment. We were a single point behind Davenport Central, who was in first place after daytime awards, and we knew what we had to do. We knew we couldn’t play it safe, and we did everything in our control to make this our best show yet. The drum hit, the show began, and this was when Mr. Walker’s three words came into play, “Go for it.”

After our finals performance, we had given it our absolute all, and then it was in the hands of the judges. We felt confident about our performance and were anxious to find out the results. The emcee started reading off the results: Davenport took Best Combo, and we took Best Costumes, Best Vocals, and Best Choreography. The emcee got down to the final two, and I had lost feeling in my hands from holding my teammates’ hands so tight. He announced Davenport Central as second, and I could feel the energy in the room switch. The emcee announced Xhilaration as Grand Champion, and everyone was filled with pure happiness and pride. We charged the stage and all got our hands on the big, gold trophy that we would soon be able to see everyday at school. Winning Grand Champion pushed us to work even harder for future goals. The next weekend, we worked as a team and ended up beating three huge schools and brought home six caption awards, along with a seven-foot Grand Champion trophy. It was a moment I will never forget. I am so proud to be a part of a group that works so hard.

The experience of seeing my team’s hard work pay off opened my eyes and shifted my outlook on what I can do in order to improve everything I am involved with. I always would settle, but was never fully satisfied with my results. I have been thinking about the many times I, and many people around me,  didn’t “go for it.”  I flashed back to the state solo competition, where I practiced very little and went into it with barely any effort involved. I didn’t try anything new or out of my comfort zone. It was a  mediocre performance with nothing special to it. Looking back, I wish I would’ve went for it and not settled for an under whelming performance.

I now can safely say that in everything I do, I give more effort and put everything I have into what I love. If it wasn’t for Mr. Walker, I never would have came to the realization of my lack of effort. I never would have made the change to become a better performer, student, or person. Those three simple words are Mr. Walker’s way of challenging us to take everything a step further. I encourage everyone to “go for it” in everything they do. Whether it’s in a sport or activity, in school, in your parish, or community. When you do, I promise the results will be amazing.

Lauryn Montuoro 

Opinion Writer