2017-04-22

【Aiden in English】

        There has never been anything like this in my life. I have never been so unprepared for a performance. For moments like this, the term “winging it” fits perfectly.

        Ironically, this was the first Chinese Yo-Yo performance that we practiced outside of school hours. We had 2 one hour sessions to work on a performance for the annual Lansdale multicultural fair, which is somewhat enough time to prepare. However, because of the short notice, we struggled to put together a reasonable show that matched the time of the song ahead of the performance.

        After a while of messing around, we mashed together tricks to fit the time frame. And then, things were put back to square one.

        Our teacher realized that the same day on Saturday was taken up by an AP Calculus Monk Exam, which left the rest of the Yo-Yo group without a major component and, more importantly, without a leader. It is said that cutting the head off a snake will result in the death of the animal, but I hope this isn’t the case.

        Therefore, it was time for the performance spotlight to be passed onto the next awaiting shoulders. Because our star group member, the one with the crazy combinations and tricks every year, was also absent, it meant the star of the show would have to be me.

        Not to sound narcissistic, but truthfully, I had two of the most difficult tricks. However, when our teacher bailed (I know he had a reason, but it feels like he bailed), a friend and I scrambled to find replacements for difficult tricks that took the required time to practice. And guess what, we didn’t have time!

        Enough complaining. When the show came, things began to fall in place. Although I was nervous and unconfident, fortune seemed to favor us. The attendance was perfect, and the performance had a sturdy, albeit a flexible plan. But knowing how these things go, plans are discarded around the halfway mark. However, this show went flawlessly, for the most part. A single mess-up was all that occurred, and it didn’t cause that much of a problem. At the end of the day, this made me feel really good inside.

        I guess the real lesson of the day is that I can lead a group. In my life so far, I’ve always been a follower. Even though I still do not feel as if I can lead a class on my own, if the moment calls for it, I can take charge.

【红霞译文】

        长这么大我从未经历过这种场面，演出当头仍毫无准备，用术语“即兴表演”来描述现状恰如其分。

        半路杀出个程咬金，想不到今天我们竟要破天荒到校外练习抖空竹。虽说我们已为兰斯代尔春季国际节周年活动两度集训，每次不惜花上个把钟头进行充分准备，然而计划赶不上变化，登台前不久我们接到临时通知，需要补加更多花样配齐全套背景音乐。

        几经尝试几经挫折，我们整编好登台动作，事情总算有了眉目。

        演出当日，空竹老师前去参加微积分大学预修课模拟考试，让学生一下子觉得少了主心骨，更重要的是空竹队群龙无首。人们常说蛇若被砍掉脑袋必死无疑，但愿今天的结局别太悲惨。

        这么一来，表演重任自然而然地落到后备成员肩上，而队里技术全面、每年亮相都身手不凡的明星又因故缺席，这就意味着我必须义无反顾地挑起大梁。

        我丝毫没有王婆卖瓜的意思，但论真格的，本人确有两招难度最大。不过当老师要务缠身（我明白情有可原，但感觉身不由己），我和同伴即便有天大的本事也得花功夫凑在一起练习配合，你猜怎么着，我们没有时间！

        抱怨归抱怨，表演开始，一切准备就绪。尽管我甚感紧张缺乏自信，但运气不错，演员们个个精神饱满，一招一式彰显扎实的功底，毕竟整套动作编排得自由灵活。鉴于以往经验，预期部署顶多完成一半，好在这次出场基本完美无缺，仅出现一点疏漏并无大碍，结束时我内心感觉无比欣慰。

        我觉得今天真正的收获在于勇挑重任，在此之前我一直甘做群众，虽说如今依然觉得无法独自担当空竹班小头头的角色，假如情势所迫，我还是能够胜任的。

Today in History(历史上的今天):

2016: College Friends Forever(大学同学终生朋友)

2014: Fifth Grade Reading Olympics(五年级阅读奥林匹克赛)

2009: 玩中学(Learning Through Play)

Crosslinks(相关博文):

The 2017 Year of Rooster Celebrated w/ Yo-Yo(抖空竹过鸡年)

Yo-Yo @ 2016 PHL Travel & Adventure Show(2016年费城旅游探险展抖空竹)

The 2016 Year of Monkey Celebrated w/ Yo-Yo(抖空竹过猴年)

Yo-Yo @ 2015 Lansdale Intl Fest(2015年兰斯代尔国际节抖空竹)

The 2015 Year of Goat Celebrated w/ Yo-Yo(抖空竹过羊年)

2015 CNY Celebrated w/ Yo-Yo @ CGCC(2015年神州教会抖空竹)

GHCS Camp─Yo Yo-2(光华夏令营抖空竹之二)

GHCS Camp—Yo Yo-1(光华营抖空竹之一)