The Man Of La Mancha

I am performing in the Man of La Mancha at Center Point Theater in Centerville, Utah!

It's a dream come true, I have loved every moment. I play 3rd prisoner on the left (translation, I'm in the ensemble) and I'm loving every minute of it.

Please come and see if your able! Click the picture below to get tickets!

I am in the Tues/Thurs/Sat Cast.

Here's the story and my take on it:

A mad man, tilting at windmills. I was skeptical when I was first told the story. The most famous song, "The Impossible Dream" seemed a little too Idealistic. He wanted to overcome all the evil in life and like those surrounding Don Quixote, I was skeptical. We can not overcome some obstacles I thought, he aimed to high, I thought, but what I didn't understand was the true message of the song and the whole story. Though the battle is lost, it doesn't matter, what matters is that it was fought. That someone stood and tried even with the unbeatable odds against him.

I sound like an idealist myself, my head lost in the music and production of The Man of La Mancha. Perhaps that is true, but better to believe in the Impossible dream and hold the dream of success then to live in the world as it is. I get so depressed some times thinking of all the sorrow of life, the pain we all have to go though just by living. The loss, pain, hurt, and truly that is what created Don Quixote. He could not bear the pain of living so he changed what he saw around him. He changed his view. He became "mad" and others fell into his madness, and were better for it, the world around him grew better for it.

Now that is the beauty of the story. The story within the story within the story. The Play is layered so beautifully. The story it begins with the writer Miguel de Cervantes who tell his story to those imprisoned with him as he awaits the Spanish Inquisition. He tell the tale of Don Quixote de La Mancha, whom he becomes in a "entertainment" or play he puts on to tell his tale.

He tells the tale of the mad man. How Don Quixote tilts at windmills and fights evil in his mad mind. It is fascinating to watch as those who listen to his madness, really listen, begin to prefer his view of life rather then the reality around them. I found myself joining his madness, wishing it to be true. He changed the world around him, and by persistence, helped others to change themselves. He changed a poor farmer into a Squire, a serving girl who has seen the worst of humanity into a pure Lady, worthy of every attention. That becomes the third layer of story.

I feel like I could write a book on all the fascinating meanings and ideas that this story explores. I realize that I have gotten on my sop box. I apologize, I just really like this whole thing and agree with so many of the points it gives. If you've borne with me this long, I commend you, I can get a little long winded sometimes.

The main point I wanted to make with this post was just to look at life as it should be, not as it is, because if we look at life as it should be then, like Aldonza the serving girl becoming Dulcinea the high born lady, life will become as it should be.

~Katie Jean~

Negotiating Relationships

I recently discussed how relationships with those around us are negotiations with others. We are constantly negotiating and defining the terms of our relationships with those around us. We define how close we are, what we share with each other emotionally and physically. Usually as we grow older these things increasingly are discussed  and decided with more then just words.

I've been frustrated with this idea in my life because so much is communicated with those around us through our body language, what our tone of voice is, and so much more. All growing up I heard young adults despair about the dating. I think dating is the perfect example of a negotiated relationship. From the very first iteration you are negotiating the give and take that will define the future of the relationship. You negotiate how much physical intimacy you will have, how quickly you progress. What the action of holding hands or kissing means. Many of these things are defined by our individual preferences and comfort level. This concept of course applies much more than just dating, it applies to family relationships, work relationships and really all aspects of life. It is a give and take between two people.

However, one relationship that I find of greatest importance is less of a negotiation as it is a personal refining. I'm talking about our relationship with God.  We, through prayer and our own actions, negotiate the terms of our lives with God. When you think about the idea that God is consistent (Hebrews 13:8, 2 Nephi 27:23) , that He does not change then you realize that the only thing that is changing, or being negotiated, is you. It's as if you are coming in to negotiate the terms of your surrender with the opposite side of war and realize that the only resistance was yourself. That half of the contract is already drawn up and was always there, the only choices to be made are yours as God has already made his.

In the LDS Bible dictionary under Prayer it says "...Prayer is the act by which the will of the Father and the will of the child are brought into correspondence with each other. The object of prayer is not to change the will of God but to secure for ourselves and for others blessings that God is already willing to grant but that are made conditional on our asking for them. Blessings require some work or effort on our part before we can obtain them. Prayer is a form of work and is an appointed means for obtaining the highest of all blessings...." if it is only our will that changes then truly the purpose of prayer is to refine us. It is to change us, not God.

Prayer and others ways of communication (such as the scriptures and revelation are ways that we communicate with God and define our relationship with Him. What a blessing it is to be have a loving Heavenly Father who helps us understand and better navigate relationships with everyone we meet.

I feel like this new perspective on relationships changes how I view my role in the negotiation. I will be kinder to the requests of others and act in a way that strengthens relationships.

~Katie Jean~

Love = Worth

What do you love most? What is of greatest worth to you?

This I love, my family.

With Valentines just past I thought it might be a good time to look at love. I recently returned home from serving as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saint's for 18 months. I was away from home and living a schedule that didn't stop or change for holiday's or weekends. I came to notice that holiday's only mattered if I made them matter, event's only had worth for me if I gave them worth.

I submit that worth comes from love. Value and the emotional connection (love) we place on an event or person are almost synonymous with each other.

There is a difference in the kind of love I'm talking about. I need to make that distinction. The love I am talking about is true love. The kind movies and fairy-tails talk about hero's fighting for. It's Charity, as the scriptures define it the "pure love of Christ" (Moroni 7:47). It's the love that provides meaning to our lives and gives worth.

For a moment I'd like to discus charity or the "pure love of Christ" in more detail. A perspective that I recently observed is that Jesus Christ loves on an individual basis. I believe that he know's me, on an individual basis. He loves me best because he knows me best. "We love him because he first loved us" (1 John 4:19). I believe also that to love is to truly understand something. The main character in one of my favorite books says it well. He said "I think it’s impossible to really understand somebody, what they want, what they believe, and not love them the way they love themselves" (Enders Game by Orson Scott Card). It is my feeling that Christ loves each individual with that love, Charity, the kind that understands, that suffers long, the kind that means something. It also follows logically that if we are each loved with this love that gives worth then we are each of worth, because of that love.

Yet so many in the world don't feel that kind of love. We don't believe we are of worth. There is a lot of talk about self worth. I think if we focused more on Charity, understanding others, we would find worth because of our love for each other. In this world where understanding is valued so little is it any wonder that we struggle to see worth?

~Katie Jean~

Perspectives

Look around you, what do you see?

I am beginning a journey and I'd invite anyone and everyone to come along. I want to understand. That is my quest, to understand more of the world around me and then to act on what I learn. From here on out I plan to post my thought's and ideas. I want to share what I begin to understand, what I already understand and what I'm doing about it.

Where do you begin such a quest? What road do you take? Someone once told be the best place to start is right where you are.

So what do you see? I invite you to stop and look at your surroundings. I am sitting in a room full of things that mean something too me. All of these things belong to me and have meaning. I see my two bookshelves and I love them dearly. They have everything raped up in the pages of those books from religion to science fiction to romance and back. Each book has taught me to look at things from a new perspective. I think that's why I love them so much. :) In another corner of the room there is a small group of porcline dolls, each was given to me and each has a story and a name I have given them as I've grown up. I almost feel that they grew up with me. In yet another corner there are two pictures of two women who have played a huge role in who I am and what I want to become. Each of these objects mean something too me. Perhaps the room you sit in is not a full as memories and objects that are personal to you but I'm sure that there is something you see that is important to you.

So the question to ask is why do these things have worth? Why do they mean something? I think it is the way we view them, it is who we are, our view point, our perspective of the object that gives the object meaning and worth. In essence it is how we feel about it and why we feel that way.

I choose for the things in my life to have meaning. I will continue to see the why, to hold onto the why. I will seek to understand the perspectives of the world around us, especially my own.

~Katie Jean~