Susan Boyle Gives Us Hope

If you don't know who Susan Boyle is (which is highly unlikely), please read this article in the Guardian.

And watch this video that has now been viewed by over 20 million people worldwide.

I personally dislike prime-time talent shows because they tend to promote shallowness and celebrity-worship. When my friend played the video of Susan Boyle on "Britain's Got Talent" for me a few days ago, I expected the usual comedic gaff but was instead shocked by one of the most powerful and beautiful voices I had ever heard. Millions of people are admitting they falsely prejudged her voice based on her looks; I, on the other hand, prejudged her singing voice based on her talking voice because I have been around long enough to realize that good vocal chords have nothing to do with good looks. This minor point aside, the story of Susan Boyle is one of cynicism supplanted by hope. I believe that when that packed audience stood to applaud Ms. Boyle with tears streaming down their cheeks after rolling their eyes at her just moments before, they were responding not just to her performance, but also to new-found feelings of hope and inspiration. The world - from Great Britain, to Japan, to the United States, and everywhere in between - could use some hope in the midst of what has proved to be the most devastating economic crisis in modern times.

We want to believe that a 47-year-old unemployed, single woman from an obscure corner of Scotland can become a star overnight (and indeed she has already, whether she wins or not). We want to believe that despite all appearances, there IS light at the end of the tunnel. There IS hope. I can't help but remember the recent election of Barack Obama and how the world responded to it as if it were a revolution in and of itself. A black man in a white-dominated world beat the odds and became president of the richest and most powerful country on earth. And just over the past week, an ordinary woman in a high-class world of lipstick and liposuction broke the hearts of millions.

These events are certainly not enough to put food on the table for millions of families, end bloody military occupations, or provide jobs and medical care (these aren't the words of a cynic but of a realist), but when I think of how my heart fluttered when Ms. Boyle hit her high note, I remember how important a smile is to ease the burden of human suffering. It has helped to ease my own pain and has inspired me to pursue my own dreams regardless of the odds stacked against me. I imagine it has already done the same for millions and will do so for millions more. Music is the language of the soul, and the world has shown in its recognition of this beautiful performance (and the "dream" that echoes from it) that it still has one.