Grateful 43 – Musicals

Day 40 – Musicals

Have you seen very many musicals? Until this year I hadn’t and that is changing. You see this is the year that I am watching 59 musicals during my birthday year. Why 59? That is how old I turned this year. And lately, I’ve set myself to do a challenge according to how old I am.

• One year I collected that number of Operation Christmas Child boxes. See this post, My OPERATION Christmas Child Plan is to Collect 55 Shoe Boxes
• Twice I read that number of books. See this post,
• Did I Read 58 Books Last Year? Summary of My 58th Year Challenge
• And this year, my 59^th year, I am going to watch 59 musicals between March 2017-March 2018.

So far I have watched 53 musicals and enjoyed most of them. And I could tell you why I was grateful for each one. It was hard to narrow down 3 for this post, but I did it. I am grateful 4 these 3 musicals.

ONE. 1776.  “1776, [is] a goofy/poignant/boring/riveting musical that frames the process of ratifying the Declaration as the original reality show (a bunch of dudes are trapped in a room together for weeks, with nothing to do but form alliances and bitch at each other).” ~ By HILLARY BUSIS.

Too often (in my experience) history has been presented as a group of facts – dull, dry facts. This musical presented the facts with emotion (and some inaccuracy). It showed me, a little, what it must have been like to be part of this historic event. There was passion … brilliance .. dedication to an ideal … bickering … stubbornness … persistence … and compromise. In the end dedication to an ideal won and America became one, new nation.

I am grateful for this musical, 1776, because it showed me that while America was and is messy, she is based on sound, inspirational ideals. Ideals I want to be part of and help live on.

TWO.  High School Musical (1, 2, 3). I saw the first one (and then other two) because my niece, Emily, recommended this musical movie.(so did her dad). It was a fave in their household.

It became a fave of mine, too. I like learning and I especially like learning when it isn’t painful to do so. The songs were peppy and singable. And the themes were meaningful.

I am most grateful for the advice, “Be true to  yourself. Don’t stick to the status quo..” It is hard to be your own person (even as an adult) and to follow your interests especially when important people in your life (family and friends) discourage that. It is a better world when we stop putting people into a box of our expectations and let them be who they are. It is a better world when we dare step out of that box and be who God has made us to be.

And I am grateful that teens saw and heard this message in a fun, lively medium.

THREE. Man of La Mancha. Peter O’Toole and Sophia Loren starred in this musical about Don Quixote’s desire to be a hero: to restore the age of chivalry, battle all evil, and right all wrongs.

Don Quixote  has “shown to what an important extent all men can, and must, create their own reality – and how inspiring and dangerous it can be.” ~ Life magazine’s critic Tom Prideaux

Don Quixote pursued his dream despite mocking, mean-spirited people. It seemed he wasn’t a hero after all. Until the end. In the end his pursuit made a difference; although he had to wait to find that out on his death-bed.

Jim Nabors sings The Impossible Dream, a fave song in the musical. Nabors is playing the part of Gomer Pyle, a frightened and unsure Marine who lost his voice (due to fear) at a company show. Pyle says he is not a great man and can’t be expected to overcome his fear. “A great man is the only one who can be a hero.”

A ranger responds to Pyle, “A hero is a man doing the  job he has to the best he knows how.”

I am grateful for this message, that we can all be heroes by doing the best we know how. That is what Don Quixote did. And that is what Pyle ended up doing. We may face our big moments and know right away that we touched people’s lives, like Pyle. Or we may have to wait until death, like the Don, before we know that we touched people’s lives. Either way, we can be a hero. So stay the course.

Your Turn . . . What is a favorite musical? Why do you appreciate it?

I am writing a gratitude series titled Grateful 43. I will do this for 43 days. And I will write three things for which I am grateful 4 each topic. Do you see the play on the words 43 and FOR THREE?  Go here for the 43 Days of Gratitude JOURNAL Prompts

Related Posts . . . 

• Half Way Through Summer Bucket List 2017 Review
• Musicals Bucket List – My 59th Year Challenge
• 78 Must See Musicals According to My Facebook Friends