Better Every Day

Ask most people what their favorite baseball/basketball/football/hockey team is and a majority of people will respond with a hometown/regional team. However, ask most people who is their favorite drum corps, assuming they have heard of drum corps, and it probably isn't so black and white. Most people who have heard of drum corps will probably respond with a corps that has been featured in the top 12 over the past years: Blue Devils, The Cadets, The Cavaliers, etc. but my recent experience has taught me that maybe we should dig deeper into the corps we choose to follow. Maybe we should look at the ideals they try to instill in their members.

If you read the mission statement of any drum corps you will find words like: discipline, dedication, leadership, hard-work, and musical development. At the Festival of Brass in Oswego, IL, I heard something that struck a chord with me and made me want to understand more of what the corps stood for:

Thank you, Lord, for the togetherness and friendship we share. For the hard working members of this corps and the corps itself. Instill in us the true spirit of competition. Taking the pain of losing and the joy of winning and all with a smile. Remind us, Lord, that by doing the very best we can at all times we will have a winning corps.

Further research on this corps showed that they place an emphasis on moral character, family environment, personal and religious growth, citizenship, and an endeavor to be "Better Every Day." This is a corps that strives to develop the whole person into the best that they can be, these are qualities I expect to find in a winner, this is Pioneer Drum and Bugle Corps. The summer tour season is still young and I can't tell you where Pioneer will finish at the DCI World Championship this August, but what I do know is everyone one of these young men and women will leave the field a winner, and should celebrate in the joy of winning.

10 Years?!

The other day I started thinking about when I first started running, turns out my running career started ten years ago. Pretty amazing when you think about it. I starting thinking about what else I have been doing/done for ten years and realized that the list isn't that long. In fact, once you toss out the ridiculous like brushing my teeth, taking showers, or driving a car, I realized that there were only two things that fell into this category: working with the Boy Scout of America and playing music.

Examining the three, I realized that they all provided different opportunities to learn/push myself. Although I am no longer able to earn merit badges or advance in rank, I am able to continue developing my leadership skills and learn how to be a mentor and help scouts reach their goals. Playing music has allowed me to express my creative side and at times provides a challenge tougher than any of my classes have ever been. Running is probably the most selfish of the activities that I participate in, but at the same time allows me the most introspective time, to better understand who I am.