Honoring and remembering the fab four

Hey Jude, don’t make it bad. Take a sad song and make it better. 

I was a young girl, sitting cross-legged on the plaid couch in my basement, staring at my reflection in the blank screen of the T.V. when I first heard these words.  To my left, my dad was sitting in a rocking chair, singing along.  He had heard these words plenty of times. I recognized the voices – The Beatles, most certainly – and, although I was already in love with their music, the slower rhythm of “Hey Jude” made me fall harder for this 1960’s British rock band.

From a young age, I could sing along to numerous songs by The Beatles, thanks to my dad, who always had them playing through the stereo in the basement after dinner.  My dad fostered my love for The Beatles, and the admiration I have for their music continues today. 

I consider The Beatles to be a huge part of my childhood, which to some seems weird, considering The Beatles were big more than 20 years before I was born.  In fact, they were such a huge part of my life that the anecdote in the last three paragraphs was taken from my college admissions essay.

Yesterday marked the 50th anniversary of the Beatles’ “invasion” of America. They appeared on “The Ed Sullivan Show”on February 9, 1964 and according to CBS, it was “the night that changed America.”

CBS produced a two hour special for the anniversary, featuring clips from “The Ed Sullivan Show” 50 years ago, behind the scenes short interviews with Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, short biographies of all four of The Beatles, and performances of The Beatles’ best hits by contemporary music stars as well as Paul and Ringo themselves.

Maroon 5 sang “All My Loving” and “Ticket to Ride,” Katy Perry sang “Yesterday,” Ed Sheeran sang “In My Life,” Imagine Dragons performed “Revolution” and Alicia Keys and John Legend performed “Let it Be” together, to name just a few performances of the night.

I always become hesitant when I hear that other musicians will be performing The Beatles’ music. I have listened to those songs so many times I’m only used to the Beatles’ voices accompanying those lyrics.  And, if we’re being honest, it’s hard to out-perform and out-sing The Beatles, whether it’s their song or not.

However, I was pleasantly surprised yesterday night.  They all rocked it.  It also takes a lot of guts to stand in front of Paul and Ringo in the first row of an audience and perform their songs, many of which Paul co-wrote with John Lennon.

Many people would say that The Beatles were revolutionary and forever changed the face of music history.  But why is that so?

They did everything first.

I was reading an opinion article on Fox News’ website yesterday that explained it perfectly.  The Beatles did things like write and perform their own songs, put messages and meaning into their lyrics and experimented with sound and style.  That’s ordinary and obvious to us now, but 50 years ago, it sure wasn’t.

The article by John Covach hit another important note too: The Beatles’ songs are relatable, even 5o years later.

Sure, I’ve been listening to their songs since the age of eight, but once I reached high school, I actually understood the meaning behind the lyrics.  I know other teenagers and young adults who listen to The Beatles.  I know adults who were once teenagers who listen to The Beatles. The Beatles, during the 1960s, were in their 20s and still growing.

We either have had the opportunity or we’re now experiencing the opportunity to grow up with the band that will forever hold a treasured place in music history.

I’ve been growing up with The Beatles, and honestly, I wouldn’t want it any other way.

School is school, but not at Creighton

It’s one of the hardest decisions you’ll ever make.  One that determines who you become, what you’ll find to be your passion, and one that helps you start the journey to the rest of your life.

You make that decision around the age of 17. Yesterday you were five and your biggest worry was how you were going to get out of taking an afternoon nap.  Now you have to decide where you’re going to live for the next four years of your life.  The weight of those worries couldn’t be any  different.

Creighton never entered my mind when I started thinking about college.  I had never heard anyone or anything mention Creighton until my dad’s colleague suggested I go take a look at it while touring colleges.

My parents and I flew out to Omaha to tour the campus.  I remember thinking, “I don’t even know why were here.  It’s too far from home. All three of us know there’s no way I’m going here.”

That’s funny, considering I’m here now.

Choosing Creighton has been one of the best decisions I have made.  I can’t imagine a better place to be at this point in my life and it’s hard to imagine my life without Creighton.

I think that Creighton is so unique and so different in a good way, and in a way that’s been good for me personally.

In my opinion, Creighton can be described in one word: community. There’s a close-knit community surrounding students, faculty and staff.

I remember touring the campus for the first time and being surprised by how many people said hello to my tour guide and how she would at least wave if not say hello back .  I watched as students walked by and smiled, and I noticed many of them would stop on their way to class to chat with their friends.

I knew I wanted that. I wanted to be able to say “hi” to people I knew on my way to class.

I sometimes talk about the Creighton community with my friends who go to state schools. They are always shocked to hear that every time I walk out a building and into another one, I pass by at least three people I know.

The relationships between students are only one part of Creighton’s unique community.  The relationship between students and professors is just as genuine.   I can’t speak for every Creighton student, but I can tell professors not only care about the success of their students,but also the students’ well being.

Every time I go to see my advisor, who is also my professor, it’s usually to ask her a question, but most often it turns into me telling her about everything that’s stressful in my life (which can be many different factors depending on the time). She will sit and listen, and she talks me through everything.  By the time I leave her office, all is right in the world again.  I don’t know how she does it.

It’s also important to note that Creighton is a Jesuit school.  Now, I am a practicing Catholic, so Creighton’s values and beliefs match mine.  However, the experience at Creighton is not about being Catholic or not being Catholic.  It’s more about being a good person.

That’s why service and giving back to our community is emphasized here.  Creighton gives you so many opportunities to serve the Omaha community.  It’s hard not to be involved in some type of service while you’re at Creighton. There’s living learning communities like the Freshman Leadership Program and the Cortina community that stress service, the Creighton Center for Service and Justice sends out service opportunities weekly through email and they sponsor fall and spring break service trips.

The Jesuits are also a really cool group of men.  Before I knew any of them, I used to think they spent all day praying or saying mass. Now I  like to think of them as having a dual personality.  They are very insightful and wise; they make you think about things in a different way and they let you decide for yourself what you believe. On the other hand, they’re also regular people who have fun and do everyday activities, just like us.

I got the chance to sit down and talk with one of Creighton’s Jesuits, Fr. Larry Gillick, last semester.  He happens to be from my hometown and also a huge fan of the Green Bay Packers.   We spent an hour talking about Milwaukee and all the mutual friends and acquaintances we have.  I could of spent all day in his office.

At the end of our conversation, he said, “Madeline, we’re practically related.  Can we be friends?”

And in that moment I wanted nothing more than to be his best friend.

It’s people like Fr. Gillick and Creighton’s professors and Creighton students that make Creighton a truly amazing place.  A place that I’m proud to be a part of.

So, with that, I give my eternal gratitude to Mr. and Mrs. Creighton along with the Jesuits who have started this institution.  Happy Founders Week, Creighton!