Weekend Preview | Storytellers – Part 4
By Ryan Weber
Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock somewhere for the past two years, you’ve probably heard of the amazingly successful Broadway musical, Hamilton. It tells the story, in hip hop, of the life of founding father Alexander Hamilton, his work as Secretary of the Treasury, and how he helped form so many of America’s foundational principles.
One of the coolest songs in that show is simply called, “My Shot.” It a song that Hamilton sings as he enters into America as a young immigrant and wants to make a name for himself. If you want to fully comprehend how cool (and white) I am, I will be more than happy to rap the song for you if I see you in the lobby.
The theme of Hamilton not throwing away his shot runs throughout the musical. He doesn’t want to throw away his shot at being a part of the Revolution, being George Washington’s private secretary, becoming Treasury of the Secretary, and potentially running for President. At the end, though (and this can’t be a spoiler if you know your American history), Hamilton does throw away his shot, quite literally, as he gets killed in a dual with Aaron Burr.
The musical does a phenomenal job portraying Hamilton’s thoughts as his life comes to a close. Instead of thinking about all the things he had accomplished, or priding himself on his own personal ambition, what he regrets the most about throwing away this shot is that he won’t be able to spend time with his wife.
When everything else faded away, the what of Hamilton’s life quickly transformed to a who.
The who (not the band, of course) makes our lives worth it. And in the context of our Storytellers series, those people to whom we decide to share our story and The Story make everything worth it. And when it comes to sharing our story with those around us, specifically our Top 5, we cannot throw away our shot. We’ve talked about the how and the what of our story, but I’m super excited to talk about who we get to share our story with!
I can’t wait to gather together with all of you this weekend.