What defines you as a person and makes you stand out from the crowd? For me it’s my favorite hobby, pastime, and class in school, band! I love music, and what a better way to feed my craving then by joining the school band! In the Mckinley band with over 100 people, I am only one of two people that plays the bass clarinet; it’s basically an extended version of a regular clarinet. The sound of this instrument is very deep and bold. Many people may mistaken my instrument for a saxophone, but I assure you it’s definitely not. I may look like an average person, but on the inside I am a groovy dude with a thirst for musical perfection!

So why did I join band you might ask? Isn’t band just for nerds? Well I’m here to tell you that it’s not 100% true. Band takes a lot of time and dedication if you ever want to be good, so you can’t just slack off and expect to succeed. Then, there is always constant the competition between you and your classmates on who gets the higher chair. I use to hate this, but now I embrace it because it makes you want to be a better player mentally and physically, which in term benefits the band. Everyone is family, we all help out each other and no one is ever left behind.

What do you even do in band? Well, for starters, we go to every football game to cheer on the tiger football team. It doesn’t matter if we are winning or losing; the band creates a fun atmosphere that everyone enjoys. Then, there is local activities such as charity runs that we go to increase morale and help get donations for people in need. Lastly, the most fun and rigorous thing we do is that every 3 or so years, the band goes to the mainland to perform, it’s a fun learning experience that cannot be forgotten!

Now that I think about it, I guess I might be a “band nerd”, but that is not exactly a bad thing because I met so much new friends this way, experienced things I would never even dream of, and many other exciting things! If I never joined band, then I have no idea what I would be like as a person. Me and my friends would have nothing in common, and I would be left depressed because I couldn’t reach my full potential. I guess band has made me a better person after all. And as a bonus, I’ve heard that colleges prefer students who are in band because they possess skills such as dedication, commitment, and perseverance. There is a saying, “when the going is tough, the tough get going” which means that we will work hard and will never give up. I’m sure I will be another lazy teenage boy who plays video games all day if I didn’t join band.

Remember, be proud to be a nerd!