Hey, wait a minute...haven't I done this already??

From Wikipedia: "Coming of age is a young person's transition from childhood to adulthood. The age at which this transition takes place varies in society ... It can be a simple legal convention or can be part of a ritual, as practiced by many societies. ... Particularly in western societies, modern legal conventions which stipulate points in late adolescence or early adulthood (most commonly 17, 18 and 21, at which time adolescents are generally no longer considered minors and are granted the full rights of an adult) are the focus of the transition. ... The term coming of age is also used in reference to different media such as stories, songs, movies, etc. that have a young character or characters who, by the end of the story, have developed in some way, through the undertaking of responsibility, or by learning a lesson."

I am 29 years old (30 later this year), and I feel like I've been here before.  But before I delve more into that, let me fill you in on what I've been up to since January 31, 2010 (my last blog post).

Near the beginning of February (the 14th to be exact), I embarked on a journey of exploration and music.  I entered the realm of pushed boundaries, crushed egos and brutal honesty.  I was a contestant in Numbers Idol 2010.

The competition started off fierce.  Everyone brought what they thought was their A-game only to be told that they needed to bring it a little harder next time if they wanted to stay in this competition.  No one was safe.  Little by little we were pegged off like little plastic soldiers being flicked by a kid playing army in the backyard.  Every week was a surprise as to who would be sent packing.  And every week we all held our breath for a few seconds until it was over, and what expelled from our lips was either a curse word, a sigh of relief, or a quiet sob.

We, as competitors, became close.  We rallied around each other when we needed extra support or comfort.  We sent frantic text messages to one another during the week about song choice, how our voices were holding up (there was a plague that ran through that competition...I honestly think we were all sick at once point or another), tips and tricks, and general encouragement.

For me it was like a boot camp.  I have been singing since I could make noise.  I have never had formal training, I had only gleaned from spending time with other performers in musicals, choirs and shows.  Numbers Idol pushed my limits, made me think outside the box and connect with my audience more.  And every time I held that microphone in my hand, one thing went through my head:

"This is it.  This is what I am meant to do.  There is nothing else in this world that brings this amount of joy to me.  There is nothing else in this world that terrifies me more than this.  There is nothing else in this world that I want to commit myself to 100%.  This moment.  Right now.  This is it."

And now I know what my Aunty Suzanne meant when she told me "Here's the deal.  You're either married to a man or to music.  Pick one and deal with it.  Music is a very demanding lover.  If you are blessed to find one good man who can compete with your love of music and he loves you truly, you'll be singing the rest of your life.  Tra la la la."  I have always known this was what I wanted to do - I want to be on stage performing.  But Numbers Idol truly solidified that for me, in my head.


It was such a tremendous opportunity for each of us to be a part of, and I honestly think we learnt a lot from it.

Not to be outshone, but I also started a new job on March 1!  I am working as a hybrid Legal Assistant/Paralegal at a private law firm in Vancouver.  The work is awesome, the people are very collegial, its a small firm so it feels like a family...its awesome.


But back to the coming of age thing.  Having learnt what I did in Numbers Idol, and having been given the opportunities these past few months, I honestly feel like I am coming of age all over again.  I'm about to graduate from the 3 and half year part-time program I did at Capilano University.  I am embarking on the next stage of my life...again.  Is it accurate to think that coming of age can only happen when you grow out of chronological adolescence?  Or are we adolescents all throughout our life in one way or another?  I certainly hope its the latter because I do not ever want to stop learning.


Thats all for now. :-)