By The Baylor Lariat
It feels like All-University Sing is all anyone hears about during the first few months of the spring semester. It seems everyone you know is in it, and it takes up a ton of time. Here’s the deal: Sing shouldn’t be life or death.
What do we mean by that? Simply put, of course the process is a tradition and meant to be intense at times, but if you aren’t having fun with Sing, then what’s the point of doing it? Yes, it’s a time to get to know those in your organization on a deeper level, but getting yelled at in a hallway isn’t the way to do that. And we’re not saying to fake your laughter or smile for the show, either.
For those who voluntarily go all-in on Sing, guess what? We don’t want to hear you complain about how busy you are all the time. You chose this life. For those who are being forced to join their group, even if you hate it, you have to be there. Try your best to enjoy the process and balance your other responsibilities.
Experiences may vary, but regardless of whether you are forced to participate, choose to do some work or essentially put up a full-time commitment, roll up your sleeves and know that you are not alone when things get busy.
As a tradition at Baylor, Sing is almost 70 years old. This means there is a lot of pressure on every eligible campus organization to not only perform but also give an amazing show. Maybe it’s time for the organizations’ members, not leaders, to be able to decide whether or not they participate in Sing. This would allow organizations to opt out without feelings of failure or disappointment going around. Having members’ points of view could also allow groups to dive into themes that have understandable storylines and critical conflicts that easily come across in their performance.
While most Sing chairs start developing their theme and storyline during the previous fall semester, there’s no real reason for Sing practices to not start earlier in the year. Doing this would allow organizations to get in the same amount of practice over time without having to crunch a full-time job’s worth of work into six or seven weeks, while at the same time maintaining a school schedule.
Finally, Sing should try to engage with more multicultural organizations at Baylor to make the programming more unique and inclusive. By bringing in more multicultural organizations, Sing can better represent the entire student body at Baylor.
We get that Sing is intense, and without that pressure, it wouldn’t be as great of a show or as visually pleasing as it is today. It’s important to note that an organization’s worth isn’t tied to whether it makes Pigskin Revue. Sing should be fun and a time to bond more deeply with those in the same group, not an opportunity to be yelled at. Make what you want out of the event, but remember it isn’t life or death.
