My "Ironic Pageant Troubles" are as follows:
Irony #1 : Physical Fitness - For those of you who have EVER met me or seen pictures of me, you will probably realize one thing - I am very tiny. Granted, I am 5' 5" which isn't exactly short, I have never had any extra body fat. Being thin is something I have faced all of my life. When I started high school I was 5'0" and 80 pounds. Talk about a shrimp. Over high school I gained five inches and about twenty five pounds. However, that is the extent of it. Since then I have worked my tail off to gain weight. This is where the irony comes in to play. How many girls can you think of that are trying to GAIN weight? When people tell me that I need to gain five pounds I simply tell them that I am trying. They look at me like I am absolutely stupid! It's like they can't fathom how someone can literally find it hard to gain weight. What they don't realize is that gaining weight for me is just as hard as a severely obese person losing weight. You have to eat past full (which is sickening), work out with limited cardio (which makes it harder to get into shape), and constantly drink protein. Therefore, working my tail off to gain weight is my Irony #1.
Irony #2 : Wardrobe - Goodness gracious where to begin. If I have been critiqued for this once, I have heard it a thousand times. "That dress was too teen." "That outfit was too grandma." "That dress was too blingy." "That talent gown didn't match your song." "The gown wore you." "That gown looks too expensive for a state pageant." The irony in this situation? Most people would assume that the pageant world want the shiniest, brightest, most expensive dress on the market. Apparently not. Let me emphasize that I do not shop for the dress that "fits the mold." I shop for a dress that makes me stand on my tiptoes when I put it on. I fall for the dress that I don't want to take off for hours. That is how I pick my dress.
Irony #3 : Be Yourself - This is one issue that makes my hair stand up on the back of my neck. People often want to change you. By people I don't mean directors, family, and friends specifically. I mean the general public. They see you from the crowd, and they want you to change your hair, make-up, attire, walk, physical fitness, interview skills, and much more. However, once these things are complete they say "Where did Jaden go? She has lost her spark!" Basically, they want you to change everything about yourself while staying true to yourself. The word should be improve, not change. Irony #3 is that you can "change" to be what everyone else things you should be, but they still will not accept it. I have learned that the thing to do is to make myself happy with who I am. There are things that all of us need to do differently, but it is important that the CHANGES are things that aren't going to completely change who we are, but instead they will improve who we are.
Now, all of this said, I am going to type to two groups of people.
Group #1 : Non-contestants - Contestants have more on our minds than the dress we will wear, the song we will perform to, or the amount of time we will work out. Given all of these things are important, there are so many more things we think about. We think about not coming across as too eager, smiling just the right amount, making friends, catching onto the the opening number, and not falling in high heels on stage. However, the biggest thing that weighs on our mind is what all of you will think if we do not meet your expectations. We are afraid to walk up to you after the pageant is over if we don't win or place. So please keep in mind that if we do not do exactly what you think at all times that we have more on our minds than you realize.
Group #2 : Contestants - As stated above, we face a lot. So it is our job to be there for each other. No one else understands better how stressful this is than each other. We can not let jealousy or fear stand in the way of friendships that can be made. This is a competition, but we can form friendships.
TIME FOR THE UPDATES!!
Being Miss Spirit of the Ouachita has been an absolute blast! Between working with Big Brothers Big Sisters during their annual marathon, singing the National Anthem at Race for the Cure, meeting former Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards, attending many local pageants, representing the City of West Monroe at Christmas on the River, and going to Miss America, I couldn't ask for anything any better.
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| Shannon Byrd and me at Miss Tech |
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| Lauren's Trunk Show |
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| My sweet Alyson!! :) |
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| Sister queens at Holiday in Dixie |
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| West Monroe Christmas Parade |
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| Christmas on the River Pageant with one of my new princesses! |
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| Abbi, me, and Monica at Miss Monroe |
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| Miss America night two! |
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| Miss America night three! |
I have speaking engagements lined up for Kiroli Elementary, Kiwanis Club of West Monroe, Rotary Club of West Monroe, and soon to have a date for Claiborne Elementary. If you know anyone who would like for me to make an appearance, let me know!
Love,
Jaden
