I got to live many lives as an actor. To wear many hats I never thought I would ever imagine, let alone wear. I saw what went on behind the scenes, when the script was just pieces of papers with words we had not yet processed, when costumes were just something dug from our treasure trove called 'Drama Room', and lines came out like we spoke a foreign tongue. The days where we warmed up on the same stage many times over, yet each time was different, unique with its own charms. I cannot remember any time in my schooling years when cca was a chore which needs to be done. It was more like an alluring chocolate souffle waiting to be eaten, like a rainbow after a typhoon called IB, a safe haven from the EEs and IAs which made us question why we voluntarily signed up for the excruciating mental torture from which we had not yet reaped our rewards.  Yes, drama was our mid week retreat (despite our drama room being the farthest away from 'resort' as you can imagine, namely, look below:)). 

When the air buzzed with the excitement and anxiety of performing for our friends and family, we all prayed together and kept our fingers crossed. As lines rolled, one after the other, we tucked the laughter and nods of approval from the audience safely into our pockets for safekeeping. When the curtains fell and it was time for the school anthem, our blood still raced with the adrenaline from the show, our voices especially loud in the cacophony which reverberated in CPA 2. Drama always gives back more than in takes, in many ways. 

I was proud to decline an invitation with the reason, "I've got drama." It has given me confidence, awareness of self, the understanding of  what responsibility meant as a team player, much laughter, and even more warmth. It gave me friends to fall back on when the going gets tough, and memories to keep for a lifetime. No, I would not trade drama for anything else. Not even for an extra one point for IB. You won't know what I'm talking about until you have invested as much as I had in something. 

Don't let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.