Each month as I flip the page over on my calendar, I am treated to an image of astonishing inner beauty. The calendar creator is Steven N. Meyers, photographer and MRI technician. Pictured here,a magnolia takes on an almost other worldly aura. Myers explains, “By using x-rays instead of light, an unusual inner vision is revealed, and Nature shows us textures, details, and shadows that would otherwise not be seen.”

There is no special camera or x-ray machine that can scan and record the details, textures and shadows of our own inner beauty. It takes a thoughtful, perceptive human being with a big heart to have that kind of x-ray vision. Can you guess who fits that description? Can’t you almost hear him singing the old Billy Joel song ”I love you just the way you are.” He treats us, all of us, not only with kindness but with sincere affection. There is a lovely quote by Martin Buxbaum about growing older: “Some people, no matter how old they get, never lose their beauty - they merely move it from their faces into their hearts.” I think David sees his fans in this way. He senses their hearts and he responds to who they have become.

This is a rare quality especially in young man not quite 19 years of age. We are hot wired as a teenager to be aware of physical beauty…who has it and who doesn’t plays a big part in our path to maturity. David is human and it would be impossible for him not to notice his young and sometimes very lovely fans. But he chooses not to limit himself by focusing just on those fans. He tries to keep his heart open to all of us. David doesn’t need to discover the truth of inner beauty, he seems to instinctively already know it. It takes a very enlightened person to see past the obvious and to be able to appreciate who we are inside as well as who we are on the outside.

David Archuleta’s fans come in all shapes, sizes and ages. Some of us are even physically ill and we may not feel like we look our best. But some of the most touching and expressive photos taken with David are with fans dealing with a physical challenge. It is in those moments that we have an opportunity to see beyond David’s good looks and see into his beautiful soul. His inner beauty shines bright and inspires us to take a fresh look at the world. David Archuleta’s genuine acceptance of all of his fans is a bridge that links us all to one another. We may look different, speak varied languages, and be decades apart in age, but because David sees us as equals, we can relax and not feel self conscious with one another.

Like the lovely unique flower images that Steven N Meyers produces, we too can create our own beautiful inner garden. What we can do is plant the seeds of compassion, patience, wisdom and generosity in our hearts .
“Cultivate the habit of taking time every day to sit in the middle of your soul so you can be in conscious contact with the beauty of your inner garden.” Lucy MacDonald

Len Sweet said:
“Don’t just make a difference in the world, make the world different.” Now that is one tall order. Is it possible — you bet! Will it be easy — no! David Archuleta - just by being who he is already is making the world different. We all know of how David will often spend his rare free time doing what is called “Fireside” chats within his church - where ever he may be in the world — from far away Manila in the Philippines to numerous places here in the United States. These events are usually kept more private but we recently had a rare glimpse into one Fireside chat due to the attendance of Don Ashley who posted a video blog called a “Special Thanks To David Archuleta” about his observations of both David’s character and the response to those also who were blessed to be in attendance:

I don’t want to paraphrase Mr. Ashley’s words as he says it so perfectly in his blog so here is verbatim what he had to say about David Archuleta:

After the fireside I had the opportunity to interview about 30 (or so) fans . . . My question was simple; “What do you like about David Archuleta?” – “He’s so cute”, “He’s adorable”, “Such a sweetie”, “He’s so incredible NICE!!!!”, “He seems so kind” and on and on…I then asked – “What about his MUSIC?” – unanimously, all loved it – I find it very interesting that even though David Archuleta reached “stardom” on a reality singing show, his fan base developed because of his sincere and genuine personality…talk about things that make you go hmmmmm. In a world where everything seems to have an angle of deception, I honestly believe we hunger for that which will truly fill us. While I’m not saying David Archuleta is “the answer”, but he is definitely part of a formula that makes this world a nicer place to be. Whether we have celebrity, fame or fortune or whether we’re just 9 to 5er’s, whether or talent is music or tuning a car, what good does it do if we’re not true to ourselves and others. David, thanks for causing us to pause and look past “the music”.

Thank you Mr. Ashley for putting together in that one paragraph so succinctly what David Archuleta has meant to his fans. And thank you for making the rest of us pause a moment and go…hmmmmm. So are we a part of the formula? Are we more a problem or a solution to what ails this world? Is making the world a better place all on David Archuleta’s shoulders? Or do we have a role to play too? As we share our David CDs and proudly wear our David inspired t shirts, buttons and charity bracelets, we are visibly David’s ambassadors. May we always keep in mind that David can’t do it alone. In the words of NFL coach John Madden on how we should go through life, “Stand for something. Always have class, and be humble.” Let’s surprise the world with our positive attitude and actions like David surprised Mr Ashley!

David -by living a life of good character - by living a life taking on what comes your way with grace and humility - by living a life of just being one of the nicest in the business: this world is a better place.

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Last Sunday night, on September 13, 2009, David Archuleta sang “America the Beautiful” in New York during the pre-match ceremony for the U.S. Open women’s tennis final. David’s singing was excellent, and he delivered a lovely and moving rendition of the song. I was also impressed and touched by some of the thoughtful things that David said regarding the song and the opportunity that he had to sing it.

David first told us the purpose of his trip to New York in a message on Twitter on Friday night, saying that he was, “Listening through America The Beautiful since I’m singing it at the US Open this weekend. Reflecting on its meaning especially on this day.” (That day was September 11, the eighth anniversary of the horrific terrorist attacks on America.) On Saturday, David did some rehearsing. At that time, he told us on Twitter that, “I love this song! Such a privilege getting to sing patriotic songs.” David expanded on these statements a bit in the video blog that he filmed that night. Here is what he had to say:

“I’m in New York for the tennis U.S. Open, which I’ll be performing “America the Beautiful” at tomorrow. And…I had rehearsals today, and it was just awesome. Um…getting to…just…remember how amazing patriotic songs are and just…remembering about all the things that people had to go through and, and…you know…had to go through a lot so we could have what we have today. And just, um, appreciating those who…who fight for our country and stuff. You just gotta, you know, show…your appreciation for them and respect to them. But, uh, I’m really looking forward to it…”

I really appreciated reading and hearing these comments from David. I think that it’s great that he appreciates being asked to sing patriotic songs and that he really did give a lot of thought to the meaning of “America the Beautiful” before performing it. It was also nice of him to share some of those thoughts with us.

David has sung patriotic songs, including “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “God Bless America” for events before, and he always does a good job. Patriotic songs in general are strong, powerful, and meaningful, which makes them well suited for David and his voice. “America the Beautiful,” though, seems to be an especially fitting piece for him. The melody is lovely, but so many of the words also seem very appropriate for David.

Here are the lyrics for the verses (the first and third of the song) that David sang last weekend:

America the Beautiful

O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!

O beautiful for heroes proved
In liberating strife.
Who more than self their country loved
And mercy more than life!
America! America!
May God thy gold refine
Till all success be nobleness
And every gain divine!

The first verse talks about the physical beauty to be found in various places in America. The refrains look to God for blessings and for assistance in making things better, and the first one also hopes for brotherhood throughout the nation. As we have seen, David is very appreciative of things that he sees around him, including the beauty of such natural features as the sky and the mountains, and he often shares his impressions of such things with us in his “tweets” or blogs. Although he doesn’t usually talk about it that often, David has let people know that his faith is important to him and has helped him a lot. The idea of people getting along with each other also seems to be something that David really cares about. He even talked about it back in the early days of American Idol, while explaining why the third verse of “Imagine”, which talks about a “brotherhood of man” was his favorite. Considering all of these factors, I would imagine that many of the lyrics of “America the Beautiful” would strike a chord with David and help him to personally connect with the song.

To me, the words of the third verse seem to illustrate quite a few of the things that David said about the song on Twitter and in his blog. In relation to September 11, the line about people who loved “mercy more than life” seems to bring to mind the firefighters, police, rescue workers, and others who willingly put themselves in danger, and in many cases were injured or killed, in order to try to help others that were in need. The lyrics about people who showed they were heroes through “liberating strife” and who cared more about their country than about themselves call up thoughts about all of those who have fought and worked (and are still fighting and working) to defend and safeguard our country and freedoms, as well as to protect and assist others around the world. Although he may not have thought about exactly the same things, it’s not difficult to see how the text of this verse could have inspired David’s comments regarding the need to have appreciation and respect for what people have had to go through in the past and for the people who fight for our country. It was nice that members of the Marine Corps joined David on the tennis court to present the flag during his performance, and that seemed to help emphasize some of these aspects of the song. David seemed to appreciate their presence, too, since he later sent a tweet that said, “Got done singing America the Beautiful! So neat especially with the marines!”

On multiple occasions, David has expressed the idea that money and fame are not the most important things to be obtained in life. He also often compliments celebrities that he has met that seem to be “down to earth,” humble, and appreciative of what they have. These comments seem to fit in well with the lines of the last refrain, which hope for a time when “all success” will “be nobleness and every gain divine.” This idea of success coming from goodness and noble actions is a nice, ideal vision or goal for each of us and for our nation. I think that, in a way, it also touches on something that many of us wish for for David and which we hope he can exemplify: the notion that one can be a good, positive, nice person and achieve success in the entertainment world and in life.

David’s performance of “America the Beautiful” and his comments about the song give us a chance to consider a lot of ideals and positive qualities, including appreciation, respect, gratitude, love of country, unselfishness, and nobility. This is a beautiful patriotic song, which was delivered very well by a special singer who seems especially well-matched to many of its themes. I would imagine that this is probably not the last time that David will have the privilege of singing “America the Beautiful” for an event, and, as long as he continues to approach opportunities of that kind in such a thoughtful way, we can all look forward to some more powerful musical and patriotic experiences in the future.

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