More refuge, more envy.

In spite of what I said yesterday, about the malicious and envious of the world, who wish to tear down, I still find solace in talent. And this story of undiscovered talent is truly astounding.

If just half this story is true this is one of the more phenomenal discoveries on the various talent shows around the world. This is from Korea's Got Talent. Sung-bong Choi is 22-years-old. He is a manual laborer. His life was one of difficulty. At age three he was left at an orphanage, at five years of age he ran away because he saws they physically abused him. As a five-year-old he slept in stairways and public toilets. He sold gum and energy drinks on the streets to make money and feed himself. One day he was selling his wares in a nightclub when he heard a singer and decided that was something he wanted to do.

As I said yesterday, where there is talent, there is envy from those who lack, but wish they had it. And some immediately started throwing mud at this young man. They noted he attended an arts high school and pretended they uncovered a secret. In fact, his application mentioned this, and he mentions that high school was his first time in a formal school, and he notes he took "master classes" there. Draw your own conclusions.

Fuel for the soul

The other day, when looking at various injustices that I see going on around me, I was rather depressed. Usually I get angry and that motivates action. But when I get depressed about what I see being done to others I sometimes fall into a depression that quiets me.

At that time I wrote: "When life seems like a load of crap, when the world seems inside-out, when justice is nowhere to be found, I take refuge in the talent of others."

I really do. When I see another person accomplishing something that they only dream of, it feeds my soul. I sometimes cry for them, with joy. I can find great pleasure in the accomplishments that others achieve. I sometimes feel I can take greater pleasure in their accomplishments than in my own, perhaps because we are all taught to play down our own talent, perhaps because exhibiting talent makes one a target.

I had never heard of Jack Vidgen, but I suspect I'll hear more about him as time goes by. And now, in England, another boy has stepped out of the shadows to show a talent that I doubt many of his friends even recognized he had. Ronan Parke astounded me. He's two years younger than Vidgen and seems to be just a small boy, lost on a very huge stage. His absolute terror at what he is about to do is apparent. He does it anyway. And I'm thankful he did. Watch this.

You can see his knees shaking with nervousness. But his life is now completely different. He has been flooded with television requests and numerous people comparing him to Justin Bieber. He told one reporter he doesn't want people thinking "there goes another Justin Bieber." He said: "I want to be myself. I don't want people to think 'That's the new Justin Bieber', I want them to think, 'That's Ronan Parke'." Amen. And he got good advice about school, don't bother going back. I seriously mean that. His success would be enough to spur on the envious hatred of the school bullies. He's better off concentrating on his career and getting schooled at home or with a tutor. Trust me, he'll be able to afford a tutor.

I find refuge in the talent of others.

When life seems like a load of crap, when the world seems inside-out, when justice is nowhere to be found, I take refuge in the talent of others.

This one will go far.

I periodically keep up with some of the British talent shows though not regularly. This boy has it all, talent, looks and personality. What I found fascinating is his selection of music is marvelously atypical for someone his age. Two years earlier he had tried to win the same competition only to lose out, and his choice of music back then was lovely as well.

My prediction is that we will hear a lot of this boy over the coming years. He still has a ways to go, but he is maturing as a singer and he has lots of potential. His willingness to keep at tells me he is going to make it. Liam Payne has a future. Here he is from two years ago.

Never, never, never judge a book by its cover. A must view.

Susan Boyle on Britain Got Talent
Uploaded by dwarthy

Trust me. Watch this, and watch it now. Then go and read what I say. But don't waste another second.

Wow. This is absofuckinglutely a joy. I can honestly say that this brought tears to my eyes. I sat in my room, in the middle of the night, applauding, and I mean literally applauding this woman, Susan Boyle. You can see how the crowd was ready to laugh her off the stage. The only person who thought she could do it was the woman herself. And boy, did she show them. Her life will never be the same after this.

She was born with a disability. She says "that made me a target for bullies. I was called names because of my fuzzy hair and because I struggled in class." She asked the teachers for help with the bullying but never got it. She says, "words often hut more than cuts and bruises and the scares are still there." She never had a boy friend, never married, and I suspect never thought much exciting would happen to her.

It was her mother, Bridget, who wanted her to try out for this talent show. But she was reluctant, she didn't think she was good enough. Her mother kept encouraging her to do so but Susan didn't try. It was only after her mother died that Susan said she "plucked up the courage to enter." Only when she realized she wanted to make her mother proud of her did she decide "to take the risk and enter the show."

Simon Cowell, whose show this is, has already entered contract negotiations with Boyle to have her join the Sony BMG label.

Susan Boyle has had a small life. She lives in the same council house that her parents lived in when they were alive. She was raised there and still sleeps in the same room she did as a child. She says she was never kissed and regrets she never had children.

This story, and this video, are a pure pleasure for me.

Note: There is a very concerted effort to stop this video from being posted anywhere with embedded coding so it is easy to watch. This really makes no sense. I have reposted it with new coding that will hopefully work but they are really trying to make it impossible to add this video to various sites.

Celebrating talent