I was finishing my junior year in high school when I auditioned for drill team captain—and I was on the brink of fulfilling my longtime dream.

I’d been active in dance/drill since 6th grade, spending most of that time in leadership positions. As a high school junior, I had served as co-captain along with another teammate (also a junior). This was unprecedented, as the school had generally awarded lead roles only to seniors, so I felt I was ahead of the curve going into the final year.

I got this! It’s mine for the taking…

In a way, for close to seven years I had been working myself up to this moment. Most of my evenings and weekends were spent practicing, either solo or with the team. We’re talking thousands of hours of practice. By this time in 11th grade, my dream of captaining the team in my graduate year was practically a done deal.  

Then I tanked the audition.

I was crushed. I didn’t realize it yet, but my dream was changing into something new.

For the entire time that I was a member of my high school squad, I was simultaneously taking modern dance classes. I had always loved performing as a drill teamer in parades, community performances, on the football field, and at competitions. While I excelled at performing and managing a team (hello…Leo birth sign!), in the dance room I discovered a new love—choreography.

It was a subtle shift at first. Beneath the noise and busy-ness of my drill team schedule, I was being nudged toward a new passion. The act of infusing free-form body movement with music resonated with me on a profound level. There were moves coming from a deep, unfamiliar place within me. This was my Soul at work. Choreography became my canvas, allowing me to express myself in ways that performing couldn’t quite match up to.

After high school, I embarked on a journey that felt like coming home. I began moonlighting with a local competitive dance squad as lead choreographer, a position I held for several years. We were top tier, and we won a lot. Choreography ignited a fire within me, reminding me that when we honor our core truths, remarkable things unfold.

Manifesting dreams isn’t solely about success; it’s about living authentically and contributing from a place of genuine passion.

This week’s Soul Guidance Reading shows us how.

P.S. I was a drill team co-captain during my senior year. Just in case you wondered how that part of the story turned out! LOL