nina, what will you be?

Last night my brother took me to see the broadway musical, In The Heights. I hadn't seen a show in quite some time and when I was there I really can't remember why I don't go more. Oh right, it's expensive and you have to plan ahead. Still.



I loved the show. The second number in the first act,Breathe, absolutely moved me. The character singing, also named Nina, had gone off too college but lost her scholarship because she had to work two jobs and couldn't make the grades. She worries about how to tell her parents and what people will think of her. She worries that she's become a disappointment. Near the end of the song she sings, "people ask, 'Gee, Nina, what will you be?" I felt like she was singing right at me and tears came to my eyes. Of course, I know what I want to "be" but I felt it was more of a challenge than a question. Like, "Hey, Nina, are you going to BE something or are you just going to be?" I'm not here to be a disappointment. I got home and I wrote the line on a post it and put it on my inspiration wall so that I can be reminded of how I felt when I heard the words.