Destiny: Mediocrity

I have never been on a winning sports team, I was never given an important role in a theatrical production, I have never been the best at anything. Today was no exception.

Today I auditioned to be an aerialist for the touring company of Cavalia. It was an invite only audition, which I was thrilled to get! I spent the last week training as much as I could in order to be ready, and I was feeling confident...until yesterday when I woke up and realized that I had strained my back. It hurt to bend and move, and at one point it was difficult to stand at all without holding on to something for support. I was in trouble. I spent most of Wednesday off my feet, soaking in Epsom salts, using heat packs and icy hot patches, and eventually doing some minor stretches hoping to loosen things up.

This morning I got up at 5am needing to take more pain medication; there obviously hadn't been much improvement. I went to a morning class and did what I could to warm up and prepare for the audition. It did help to move around, and when the adrenaline kicked during the audition in I *almost couldn't feel any pain, even if I still didn't have my full range of motion in my back.

The audition was small; only 11 girls had been invited. For the first time I thought I might actually have a shot at the job- this was much better odds than the Disney parade audition I had gone to a few weeks ago where I was one of over 500 female dancers in attendance. I started getting my hopes up.

I did a hoop routine and a short hammock routine and shared my experience working with horses. I was told by one of my instructors that the horse experience probably gave me a good edge for this show.

At the end the creative directors thanked us for our time and said they'd get back to us. And they did - just a few hours later while I was spending time with one of my friends who had auditioned. She got a callback, I didn't. The worst part? The lack of empathy she had. No, she wasn't rubbing it my face, but when I wondered out loud if I was going to get a call after she had gotten hers, there was no show of support coming from her. No encouraging words, no consolation when the call didn't come. It felt like she was expecting me not to get it, and that she wasn't surprised that I didn't get it (by the way, she also tried to discourage me from doing the Disney audition).

But, I can't say the day was a complete waste - I was offered a job at The Coffee Bean. So now I can take all my training and my college degree and serve everyone their morning jolt as they head off to their important and successful positions in the world. Because, of course, when successful people write their memoirs, they'll for sure mention the girl who gave them the caffeine necessary to make their dreams come true.