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Tuesday, December 7, 2010

And we're.... Back!


Yes, it's been about a year. And yes, I'm a terrible blogger. I know! I'm sorry.. But we all believe in forgiveness, right? So lets give it another try, shall we? Great. Here we go, summing up the past year...

I think of 2010 in three parts. Three major decisions. I spent more time on my knees in this year than ever before. Making decisions is hard! Can I just say that? I'm quite exhausted to tell you the truth. Nevertheless, I made it through.

Major Decision number 1: Get outta dodge. I finished my Script/Breakdown class at Stella Adler and felt a little out of place in Los Angeles. You know the feeling when there's about to be a change in your life, you can feel it. I guess maybe the rose-colored glasses started to wear off... I found myself driving to the beach a lot and craving some simplicity. So I swallowed the California dream and dad came down to get me. So it's April, I'm home again in my big bed that doesn't squeak, mom's cooking for me downstairs, and I'm still completely in love with acting. Enter, Footloose at the Terrace Plaza Playhouse. The show ran from the middle of June until the end of July and it was an absolute blast. But, the show always ends at some point.

Major Decision number 2. School. Or Mission. It's easy, Haiz, just pick one. Yeah, okay, sure. It was the hardest choice I had faced up until that point in my life. A mission is scary! I really wanted to get married... I didn't want to be 24 before I got married! We live in Utah! But. I had a strong desire to serve. I felt like my testimony was at the point where both feet were firmly planted and I wanted to share it so bad. Acting in LA had taught me a lot about confidence and stepping out of my comfort zone and I was so eager to get out and do it. So I made the decision to go. I hit the books like crazy at that point, learning everything I could, filling out my papers, all that jazz. Bishop Muse advised me not to go to school in the fall because I could leave before the semester ended. Well I couldn't do just nothing every day. I wanted to do another show before I left. Seemed like a great plan. Studying, preparing, working in the day and dancing, singing, acting at night time. I started looking for auditions on a Tuesday morning. What do you know... Draper Historic Theater is holding their call-backs for Footloose that very night. A show I already know! Perfect. I called the director, he said come on down, so I got in the car and went. That's honestly as much thought as I put into it. I got cast as WendyJo. Awesome. Everything is just dandy, I'm happy as a clam. And then.... my life changes. Again.

Major Decision number 3. The initial cast reading at the theater. It was the following Tuesday after Callbacks. I sit down in the circle and we start introducing ourselves. "Hi, I'm Hailey. Playing WendyJo. Just decided to go on a mission." (They wanted us to say something interesting about ourselves...and I was super jazzed) Right as I said it, a boy with tan skin and biceps sitting across from me perks up his head and his eyes light up. My very thought was, Please say he just got home, not that he's just leaving on a mission...

Taiwan, Taipei mission. Just got home in July. Yes..

I wish I could say that the rest is history but it wasn't easy. I really did want to go on a mission and it took a long time for me to accept that this incredible guy really was interested in me and that I would have to consider giving up my mission. It started changing for me one Monday night performance when I was so sick and didn't know how I was going to perform. Have you ever been so sick that you felt like you could burst into tears at any random second? That's where I was that night. He grabbed me from my car, and took me into the dressing room where he had a rose in one of the prop vases for me. I hugged him, and unable to hold it in of course, cried for a few minutes and he just let me. Crying freaks guys out, lets be honest. But he was so sincere! I really needed him and he was more than there for me. And so with one sweet gesture after another, the decision to go on a mission or stay got really hard. When I said that Major Decision number 2 was the hardest one I'd ever made, well this one topped it. You can ask him, I was a wreck for a good couple of weeks. But as you've already observed, it's December 7th and I'm still here. In Utah. I made the decision to stay and things are just awesome. :)

His name is Conrad, by the way. And I think he's pretty great.



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