Standing in a crowd of hundreds of people, bright lights decorating the stage, the clammy feeling you get from being in a crowd for too long, I witnessed one of the most magical bands I've ever seen. Not only was their sound incredibly unique, not only were their voices beautiful, not only were their pieces captivating and poignant but their chemistry as a band was physically visible not only did they love music but they lived it as a single cohesive unit. From the moment, "The Takes" stepped on stage, I saw that they loved their art; they loved playing music together and they loved each other. From the bassist dancing on stage to the guitarist jamming with the lead singer, their chemistry was visible. You could tell that they had one heart, and it had one beat. The quote "One Heart, One Beat" means to me is unity, trust and shared purpose that tranforms an individual sound into something powerful, purposeful and poetic. It is when people come together to make music, something magical takes place. Growing up in orchestra, I was trained from a young age to not only keep a close eye on what I was doing--following along with the conductor, listen closely to the arragement, making sure my intonation was correct--but to also to be mindful of the people around me. Why? Because collectively, we ebb and flow together, we are to breathe together, our bows are to synchronize and it is only when we are truly one heartbeat, music is made and magic is happening. "One heart, one beat" is a great representation of how orchestras and bands operate because not only does the group have to be on the same page musically but there is a shift that happens when a band is truly beating with the same heart. "One heart, one beat" is deeper than just staying on time or being together, everyone is working harmoniously together. "One heart, one beat" means you, listen and adjust to each other as a body system as one heart. One beat means each musician must not operate on his own but humbly keeps one beat for the whole group. You could have a group of proficient musicians who are working to stay on rhythm, have superior intonation, and are overall talented at playing their instruments but they do not recognize the art behind the piece as working together as one. Being a part of an Orchestra is being on a team and has taught me success is not found in standing out as a violinist but to work in step with each other towards a shared goal. As humans, were were divinely designed for collaboration. Playing music on your own is fun your the star that shines but there is something magical that happens when you are in a sea of violins playing with the same passion and excitement as you, it is one heart one beat that is sheer joy and exhiliration that you keep coming back for more week after week, year after year, performance after performance. Truly invigorating. "Looking back on my 10years with Lakeland Youth Orchestra I feel blessed for the lessons learned. To my parents: thank you for teaching me the power of persistence and for never letting me give up when the music got difficult. This journey has ignited a deep, purposeful passion within me, and I am honored to continue my musical education at the collegiate level.

When I was a child, I always struggled with talking to people; the words were just never there. I was so shy that every time I had to talk to someone, I hid behind my moms legs and hoped they didn't see me. This sparked a question for my mom: "Do I want to raise a child who cannot communicate, or do I want to raise an effective communicator?" Years later, when my mom was asked to be a community judge for a Christian speech and debate competition, we were impressed at how effectively a high schooler could eloquently explain the trinity and why it matters. It was in that very moment, while watching a student deliver a six minute apologetics speech that I knew I wanted to learn this art of communication. My career in National Christian Forensics Communications Association (NCFCA) has greatly equipped me with being able to both share and defend my faith. The Lord has used my five years in NCFCA to truly challenge me and equip me as an ambassador for Christ to communicate truth with integrity and grace. Apologetics as a category has always been my favorite category to participate in, not only because I have the opportunity to talk about God for six minutes, but because it teaches me how to effectively communicate my faith and the fundamentals of my faith to someone else. Not only has Apologetics greatly equipped me but the category of Impromptu as well. In this event, you are given just two minutes to prepare a five minute speech on a random topic. Though it is difficult, I recognize Impromptu's importance because it trains you to think quickly and communicate clearly under pressure. In a real world situation, when someone asks me about my faith, I have no prep time with a pen and paper, but the beauty of Impromptu is that it trains you to think as you speak. This skill prepares me to respond thoughtfully when someone challenges my beliefs or asks difficult questions about Christianity. One of the highlights of my summer every year is going to Worldview Academy and it is at this camp that I get to put my Apologetics and Impromptu skills to practice. In the middle of the week, the entire camp goes evangelizing in the nearby town and I remember one moment when I encountered a woman who said that she does not believe everything in the Bible yet in the sentence before, she stated that she believes that the Bible is the only source for truth. My answer to her was that if she believes in the Bible's truthfulness, she must believe 2 Timothy 3:16, "All scripture is God-breathed," and therefore she has no reason to not believe everything in the Bible. When sharing my faith with others, I am well-equipped -- because of NCFCA-- to think quickly, ask questions, and share the basics of Christ. I owe all my speaking abilities, knowledge of basic theology and apologetics, and my love for learning theology to NCFCA. Their mission statement "To challenge and equip ambassadors for Christ to communicate truth with integrity and grace" has proven true in me. From a shy kid who never wanted to talk to anyone, I have grown to be someone who is comfortable communicating, not only my faith but the things I believe in, debating topics with logical thought and evidence, and confidently sharing the truth of the Gospel with clarity, conviction, and grace.

Music has always been a constant that has carried me through my life from singing worship songs in church on Sundays to belting out songs in the car with my friends to riding in the backseat of my parents car with headphones on. I have always had a passion for music because it has shown me how creativity and art isn't just exclusively in painting or sculpting, but its in the prose of lyrics or the intricate melodies of orchestras or the catchy beat of a pop song or the technical rhythms of jazz. Music, to me is magic--the gateway to the soul, a way of communicating deep emotion and influencing emotions. Music, because its magic, has the power to influence people's thoughts, feelings, and emotions; music is not only something pleasing to listen to when cooking or something to dance to, but it communicates messages to the listener, it tells a story, it invites the listener to peak inside the brain of the writer. Why I am passionate about music is because I not only am listening to a catchy beat or deep lyrics, but I am experiencing a window into the inner thoughts, feelings, and beliefs about the mind behind the song; the person who wrote the song has allowed me, the listener, to have a brief intimate moment to experience what they are experiencing. Music is a deeply intimate spiritual and emotional bond between the writer and the listener. How I hope to grow as an artist is in finding art in every aspect of my life-- in the mundane, the exciting, the difficult, the easy, in every situation. The truth is, art is everywhere, in the clouds on a clear sunny day, in the chirping of the birds, in the honking of cars in traffic, even in everyday conversations. Art is everywhere, all the time, and we just have to look for it. I strongly believe that we were all created by a creative God who loves us enough to impart His creativity into us. I find that the same God who created vivd colors and vibrant melodies also created humans with the inclination to create their own vivd colors and vibrant melodies. After all, some of the most beautiful prose and poetry is found in books of the Bible such as Psalms and Songs of Solomon. God gave me this passion for music and He gave me the desire to learn and grow in my passion so part of how I hope to grow as an artist is in seeking the source of all divine creativity and abiding in His presence daily. At the end of the day, my goal as an artist is to communicate God's goodness, truth, and beauty through my art because music is a gift from God and is my passion. It is the universal language of the world and how we as humans can interact with each other on a deeply spiritual and emotional level.