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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I have heard it said by both fans and friends alike, that David Archuleta is the “real” deal. In the dictionary the word real is defined as: true; authentic and genuine; not pretend; sincere.

Recently I observed David showing his true, authentic and genuine self. He did not pretend and he was so sincere. It was a simple video taken by a fan during one of David’s concerts last week in St. Louis, MO. At the time, he had been battling allergies and was not feeling his best. There were some reports that he had lost his voice a few times during the day and was on vocal rest. This video and a recent blog from David confirmed that. However David as usual, would go on to perform wonderfully regardless of how he was feeling. In that blog of his, as Judith mentioned in her article from August 13, “Upside Down”. David wrote:

“This last week has been pretty interesting since I’ve had the little challenge of trying to perform even though I was struggling with losing my voice. It’s actually been a pretty good learning experience though! I struggled quite a bit the last 3 shows, but what’s interesting is that I loved all 3!

David, we loved them too! You sang beautifully as usual and you enchanted and entertained the audience with your charisma. You may have not been feeling your best but your sure did a wonderful job of giving your best! ;)

Now about that video I was referring to earlier. In it, David was going to sing a song on the piano when all of a sudden he stops. He seems visibly sick. While he is talking with the audience, he does sound a bit congested and raspy. As he continues to chat with the crowd, he does something that I found not only amusing, but also very charming as well. David gets up from the piano and quickly excuses himself from the stage. It was not only what he said when he did this, but also the way he behaved that I found so endearing. He talks with the fans as if they are old friends. He treats them like he would any one else he knows well. He seems to feel comfortable enough with them, that he can excuse himself while he is in the middle of a performance and promise that he will be right back! I find the way he interacts with people to be so delightful. Fame has not gone to his head. On the contrary, he is so normal and down to earth, that he can behave with us the same way he would if he were at home performing in front of family and friends. He keeps it real! Of course David was back in front of his audience in no time flat. He quickly composed himself, then flashed that enormous grin of his. He acted as if it was no big deal, because of course the show must go on!

David’s performance that evening was amazing and he did not disappoint! It got me thinking about other stars. How many would have canceled their show because they did not feel they could pull it off? Would they have given their audience such a sweet and true explanation? I wonder, because David is so different from other stars. He is so real. He tells the audience like it is. He does his very best to perform even when he is not feeling one hundred percent. He tries to do what he is comfortable with, while also making sure to put on a good performance for the fans.

David Archuleta has such a natural ability to make his fans feel at ease. He is a true professional in every way, when he sings. He is a star, but when he talks to his fans he is “just David”. He is sweet and genuinely caring. Polite, honest and engaging. He is a talented and wonderful performer. Yes, I do think David Archuleta is the “real” deal, and it is such a pleasure to experience.

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Benevolence is the expression of kindness and altruism.

On July 15 David posted on Twitter :

Just did some things for Rising Star Outreach :) Haven’t heard about it yet? go here to learn about it: http://www.risingstaroutrea…

On that day David Archuleta took time away from his very busy schedule of non-stop touring and recording to again lend a helping hand to Rising Star Outreach by promoting Angels For A Cause second phase project - “Pathway of Hope.” This project is dedicated to collecting funds via brick purchases to build a pathway to a small garden area in honor of David at the new secondary school for the children of the leper colonies in India. These funds are to help furnish and purchase supplies for the school. To help promote this project David met with Amy Antonelli, Executive Director of Rising Star Outreach, to autograph for auction a representative red brick stepping stone - pictured above. Part of the Pathway of Hope project is custom jewelry that David also helped to show case.

From the smiles in the photos on the video below, you know that David has learned that happiness is not achieved when pursuit of it is the end goal. Instead I think he knows that happiness is achieved along the pathway of giving of one self to the benefit of others.

“The true source of cheerfulness is benevolence.” P. Godwin

David Archuleta knows that there is a future worth fighting for - for all of God’s children and is lending of himself to help out and raise awareness for those less fortunate than ourselves.

“There cannot be a more glorious object in creation than a human being replete with benevolence, meditating in what manner he may render himself most acceptable to the Creator by doing good to his creatures.” Fielding Henry

Angels For A Cause

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Although David Archuleta has won 4 Teen Choice Award Surfboards, this blog title “Wipe Out” is not a surfing reference. Instead it is about the eraser that David doesn’t need but we probably do.

John W Gardiner wrote:
“Life is the art of drawing without an eraser.”

Now what does that mean exactly? Perhaps it can be interpreted to mean, take care in your words and actions. At the end of any given day are there things we wish we could erase but can’t? In this time of instant tweets and texting we have even more opportunity to stick our foot into it big time. Thanks to 21st century technology we can mess up incredibly fast!

Every once in a while, David Archuleta, in his open endearing way, may be a wee bit too candid. But never candid in a hurtful way to anyone but himself. I am in awe of this young man who never says an unkind thing about anyone else. I don’t think it is even a struggle for him. His innate kindness is so deep and genuine the idea of being any other way never enters his mind. If life was the New York Times crossword puzzle, David could fill it in nicely in ink!

But for most of us this can be a daily temptation. At school or work or even with the families we love so much..we can wound with our words. Have you ever had one of those terrible moments when what you wrote or said about someone comes back to haunt you? Your heart races, your cheeks burn with embarrassment and regret…. you wish with all your heart that you could wipe it out forever with a giant eraser? My grandfather would warn us in Spanish about “sapos” ..toads that jump out of our mouths. The words said in anger or jealousy that should have never been said.

Try to picture David being verbally rude or sarcastic in line at the supermarket or while pumping gas for his car. Would he verbally attack the person in front of him who has 12 items not 10 in the express line? Would he lash out at the driver of the car that got to the gas pump before him? Would he send an e mail or Tweet that was negative about anyone? I don’t think so. Actually it is humorous to try and picture David acting this way…it would be so out of character.

So maybe we can count to 10 before hitting the send button or think a little before letting lots of ugly little sapos hop out of our mouths. Until we can invent a “Way Back Machine” that allows us to erase what we said or wrote..it might be a good idea to listen more and speak a little less. The Dalai Lama has commented on mistakes made:”When we make mistakes, we cannot turn the clock back and try again. All we can do is use the present well.”

And an Unknown Author penned this very smart statement :”The kindest word in all the world is the unkind word, unsaid.”

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Last week David Archuleta made a very last minute decision to cover Colbie Caillat’s song “Bubbly,” during his solo concert in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Thankfully video cameras were rolling for those of us that could not be there to experience it ‘live’. When the videos hit the Internet the next day, like so many other fans of David’s, I was thrilled! But it wasn’t just the beautiful way David sang the song that I loved, it was also the way he played to the audience. He was sweet, funny, humble, confident and apologetic. In those few moments he was on stage, he showed us his amazing talent and he was totally endearing.

There was one video from that evening that I really enjoyed. In my opinion it captured David at his best. In it, David starts off by greeting the audience, though it is an encore performance. He begins by chatting with the fans very casually. He is explaining that he was rehearsing a song before the show, when band member Kendra, asked him what he was singing and he told her. However, it was not the song she thought and that gave David an idea! Together, they decided to challenge themselves and try a new song they both liked. David made sure to let the audience know that it was all very unplanned, so if he messed up he wanted to apologize in advance. As David explains this to the crowd, he does his best not to let the audience know the song right away, as if he wants to surprise them. As I watched this video for the first time, I was thinking to myself…what an amazing performer! Not only is he going to try and sing something new that he has not had the time to really practice, but he is making sure to let his fans know that he will do his best with it and that it might not be perfect. He seems to want the fans to know this ahead of time, as if he is afraid of disappointing them in case he makes a few mistakes. He even invites them to sing along and help him with the words, if he needs it. I think it is really something the way he is so confident yet conscientious. He is a consummate performer.

Of course David went on to perform the song beautifully, leaving many fans speechless and wanting more. All I kept thinking was…wow he did it! He sang that song as if he had sang it a million times before. He performed it effortlessly, and with so much emotion, that I was left stunned by it. I have Colbie Caillat’s CD with “Bubbly” on it. It has always been a song that I liked very much, but David’s version was just incredible. Honestly, I like his version better than the original. He has the ability to take a song and make it his own, so easily. He does it so well, that when I hear the original song again, all I can think of is David’s version and how much I love the way he sings it more.

I looked up the word ‘bubbly’ in the dictionary. It is defined as; enthusiastic, vivacious, spirited, vibrant, joyous, gleeful and full of life. All these words describe David Archuleta, as well as the way he makes people feel when they are in his presence. So it was a perfect song choice, because when David Archuleta performs anything, he definitely leaves us feeling bubbly!

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