A Home Between the Walls, September 19th 2008

When I was first born, my family and I lived in a house in Colorado Springs. My two brothers were able to grow up in that house. However, I do not have any memories from living in that house for two years. When I look at its pictures, I get a familiar feeling, but I can’t recognized it or remember ever living there. After I turned two, my family decided to move into a larger house so my parents could have more room to raise children. So, they chose to build a house in Crystal Hills in Manitou Springs, Colorado.

This is an early memory that I have. I remember watching the progress as it was being built by my father. Fifteen years ago, there weren’t as many houses in Crystal Hills as there are now. Many lots next to ours were empty, while they are full now with beautiful homes. Though I didn’t know at the time that this place was going to be our new home, I was still very excited. During the whole construction process, we stayed in a smaller house that my parents rented, though I can’t remember it at all. Once the house started to be built, we were able to visit it more and more.

My most vivid dream occurred one day when the entire family went over to the construction site to help. My dad used to drive this very old, ugly, and hardly durable pickup truck. I was sitting in the front seat, and we were driving through Crystal Hills. We finally reached the lot where the house was being built. The lawn was still all dirt and they were still framing the house. Rather than parking on the street, my dad drove onto the lawn, and it was a bumpy ride. This surprised me, so I started to cry. After I calmed down for a little bit, my dad let me play around in the dirt while he talked to his contractors. At this time I still had no idea that this would be our new house. I was also confused as to why there was no grass and only dirt, but I don’t think I was too upset. While I was playing, my mother was inside figuring out some interior decorating ideas, and I believe my brothers were sitting in the truck listening to the radio.

My dad then took me inside the “house,” which was only the framing. Still, it was really cool to walk through these fake doors and look at all the huge rooms. I could see where our fireplace would be, and most exciting, where the kitchen would be. This house was like a mansion to me, and I couldn’t wait for it to be finished so that we could move into it. Then, my dad showed me where my room would be. It was larger than what I even dreamed up. I walked around, able to do laps it was so large. He then took me to this framed box underneath a window. He told me that it would be my own toy box, without having to share with my brothers. My happiness and innocence in life seemed to emanate at that moment. I got this feeling inside me that this would be my one special place where I could play and have a fun time. Then I remember him telling me that it was going to be painted pink and that I would have teddy bear wallpaper. This made me happy because my nickname since birth was Claire Bear.

What I also remember really well about this experience is how simple and wonderful it was. This new and large house became a new adventure for me to journey with my brothers. That day, we played hide-and-go-seek in the basement, hiding behind toolboxes and large wood pieces. Though we didn’t know it at the time, that basement would become a very good place to play pretend. Everything seemed so perfect that day. I spent my time in my new room, imagining all the amazing things I could do with it. It’s hard to say how long we spent there that day, but it seemed like it was forever and that it would never end.

The one thing that is fuzzy in my mind is my first few years living at that house. I think it’s because I was so overwhelmed with many really good memories. However, the first day I was actually able to see what our new house would look like has stayed with me even to this day. I can still smell the sawdust from the workers in the basement. The dirt that I played with was just right: it wasn’t too wet to get muddy, but it was damp enough to create things with it. Then, when my brothers and I played hide-and-go-seek, I almost remember hiding in the closet in my room, feeling safe and knowing that my brothers would never be able to find me in there. This memory is not just my first memory; it is also a very important one in my life. When my family moved into that house, we became closer. My brothers and I had more space to explore, and my parents had more space to raise us in. I’m happy that my first memory is of the first day I saw the new house; hopefully, it will stay with me forever.

You Can Take It With You, September 5 2008

"The stage is not merely the meeting place of all the arts, but is also the return of art to life." As I read this quote by Oscar Wilde, my mind flashes to a place where I am at home in my own skin. I was introduced to this place at a time when I was desperate for a comfort zone, and it gave me solitude and serenity. The District Auditorium is the one special place that has that familiar smell, feeling, and even more important, memories. My favorite memories from high school happened in that very auditorium, and I know that they will always stay with me, even when I do move on to a new life somewhere else.

As far back as I can recall, I have always been involved in that theater my entire life. When I started school at Manitou Springs Elementary, we would perform even the smallest plays. Even then, I always felt safe, comfortable, and at home. Other times I was in the auditorium included when my older brothers were in play productions, choir productions, or even their 8th grade promotion. No matter what reason I was there for, I always enjoyed myself far more than I had before. I remember playing hide-and-seek with my friends in the seats or performing for Arts Academy, something I looked forward to every summer during elementary school. However, after I entered middle school, I didn’t spend as much time in there as I had wanted to.

Middle school was an awkward time, and I always had trouble finding a niche that would satisfy me. Because I went to school in a different building, I found it harder to visit the auditorium as often. The few times I did were to see my brother Ryan act in the high school plays. I admired these characters on the stage, but I never thought I would get the chance to act there. This thinking resulted from the fact that I never was able to participate in the middle school plays as much as I would have liked. It wasn’t until high school that my love for this place increased even more.

As nervous as I was for high school, I needed to find one thing that I was somewhat familiar with that I knew I would enjoy. So, I tried out for the fall play, and ever since, I have been in almost every production since then. My friends and I made so many amazing memories in that place, from set buildings, line readings, final productions, to even the costume room cleanouts. The auditorium became a home for so many, and we all have left our passion in there. One day, when we were painting the stage black, Sophie, Nora, and I decided to find a random place backstage where we could leave our handprints with the paint we were using. After deciding to put them under the wooden staircase in the secluded and dark back corner, we each placed our hands next to each other on the floor and left our own history that we will one day look back at and recall the amazing times we shared, all seen through our black handprints. Another memory so vivid in my mind was the time when my friends and myself were mopping the stage after a production, and we thought for some reason that the mop bucket would manage to get down the staircase, but, with our luck and possible stupidity, it tipped over and flowed down the entire concrete staircase. If the visual wasn’t enough, the smell was even worse due to the dirty stage water filled with paint chips, sawdust, and costume remnants. However, we never took the initiative to clean it up. Instead, we spent our time admiring rose buds that were in the water, and I suppose we felt bad for them, so we took them outside in the snow to clean them up. Then, we spent about an hour standing there staring at the rose buds shining in the snow and thinking that that was the most peaceful, beautiful, yet tragic thing we had ever seen. At the time we were serious about it, but I think we will all agree that it was a very amusing situation. The air in the auditorium is unlike any other, for it gives off this warm feeling that leaves one with butterflies in their stomach. The smell can only be described as one that has gone through so much, including sweaty actors, wet paint, rotting wood, and dusty furniture. However, I wouldn’t change that for the world, because it all comes together and gives one the sense that they are seeing and experiencing history just by standing there. I witnessed so many things in that auditorium, like cross dressings, injuries, awful sexual innuendos, and traditions that, depending
on opinion, we hope we will never forget.

As this last school year begins, I can only look back at the good times I had in the auditorium and grin. Not only did I make friends that I know I will keep for a lifetime, but I learned so many lessons, not just about acting, but about life itself. Acting, in my opinion, is interpreting and expressing a writer’s words. After I learned this, my creativity and love for art only increased. In life, I began to understand that anyone can act, as long as they have a love and passion for it. I believe that the stage allowed me to crawl from my shell, and I am able to open up more to people now, even if I don’t know them too well. Everyone was able to be themselves because we all had a love for acting, art, and expressing ourselves in general. If it wasn’t for this place, I have no idea what person I would be today, but I do know that the auditorium has affected me in a positive way, more than anything else has. I look forward to spending even more time there now that the plays are starting again, and I know the feeling is mutual with everyone. When I get on that stage again, standing under those mesmerizing, warming, and comforting lights and feeling the buzz and energy from the excited audience, I will be home again. This refuge has helped me to discover how I want to live my life, and I will always take that with me.