Fifth grade was a crucial part in my becoming a man. Had I not met a particular girl, I would be nothing short of Merritt, the One Who Did Not Embarrass Himself at the Talent Show. It is very interesting – and troubling – how easily girls will persuade girlfriendless boys to do things they normally would not do. I, as a matter of fact, was one of those boys. This is what transpired: blue-eyed, blonde-haired Emily signed up for the talent show – singing. I, shorter-than-Emily, baby-faced Merritt, signed up for the talent show – also singing – immediately after I caught wind of her participation. As ready as I was to embarrass myself and ruin my future, I was even more prepared to win over Emily’s heart. I knew this was my chance to impress her. Upon signing up for the talent show, I realized that I would need to pick a song. Maybe a love song would do, or simply a song that showed off my attractive vocals. No, I was more creative than that. After pondering more than I ever had before, I settled on the perfect, most voice-flattering song I could think of – The Phineas and Ferb Theme Song.
I was hard at work. Many hours did I selflessly give up to perfect my act. Every day I would practice with Emily in mind, thinking about the future recesses we would spend together. Sometime along the road, I decided that I would bring along a Guitar Hero guitar, convinced that it would further enhance the awesomeness of my performance. I even brought it upon myself to bug my mom to buy me Phineas and Ferb clothes to wear during my performance; like I said, I was hard at work.
The days leading up to the talent show became elongated, and it seemed like months had passed since I had first signed up; I just wanted to perform! The rest of my class had heard about my participation in the talent show, as well as my motives, but that was regarded as more of a “rumor” than a fact. A week before the event, however, each performer had a chance to schedule a private dress rehearsal, and I signed up. The excitement burned within my bones, regardless of the fact that I was performing just for the talent show director. I arrived at my scheduled time and waited outside the door. As I sat, an elegant, melodic voice found its way into my ears. I was transfixed and I found it hard to concentrate. To my dismay, the voice stopped singing, and just moments later, Emily burst through door, almost squashing me. I arose and fixed my hair and gave an awkward smile. I opened my mouth to speak, but words did not exit my mouth. Instead I said something similar to the way a goblin from under a bridge in a fantasy novel would speak. I choked on my words and my smiled transformed into an ugly frown. She gave me a befuddled look in return and said, “Good luck, Merritt!” She turned around, whipping my face with her long, blonde hair, and ran away. I wandered into the room, dazed. That went rather well, I thought dreamily.
I was ready for my first performance. I stood on the stage, shaking with anticipation, then… nothing. The director yelled out, “Let me try again!” Was the CD broken? It was working at my house, I wondered. My fear, almost as if it read my thoughts, came true. The CD, for whatever reason, was not compatible with the sound system in the assembly room, the very room where I would be performing my song! My heart sunk and my guts began to tangle up. I was not prepared for an a cappella performance. When I arrived home, I sulked about how miserable my performance would be. I continued to practice, but my zeal seemed to be diminished.
The week moved on, and the school talent show had arrived. I remembered sitting in the back, in the dark, waiting for my turn. I was shaking uncontrollably and I began to doubt the validity of my reasoning behind it all. All for a girl. I was not aware that I was capable of such gut-wrenching nerves. All for just one girl, I repeated, feeling ashamed. Soon, it was my turn, and I felt as though I would fall over with just one poke. My insides seemed to be doing gymnastics as I walked towards my doom. I slung my Guitar Hero guitar over my shoulder, attached my mini microphone onto my Phineas and Ferb t-shirt, and meandered my way to the stage. I stared wildly at the crowd, my heart slamming into my ribs. Have courage, Merritt. Think about Emily, I reminded myself. Then, without a second thought, I sang. I sang with such zeal and determination! I moved around the stage like a rock star! I played my fake guitar with a fierceness as intense as the sun itself. I felt alive! As I wrapped up the song, I backed up to the very back of the stage. Using all the remaining strength I could muster, I ran and ended my song with a power slide. In the process, my microphone had detached from my shirt, but I could not care less. I did it! I rocked my performance! I held out a peace sign and yelled, “Thank you very much!” I strutted off stage with a new sense of accomplishment. No longer did I care about embarrassment. No longer did I care about impressing some girl. All that mattered was impressing myself. And I did just that. I was Merritt, the One Who Embarrassed Himself at the Talent Show! The One Who Rocked Out to Phineas and Ferb!