Oh, fickle heart of the masses.  Susan Boyle wowed millions watching Britain’s Got Talent, putting to shame those sneering at the homey, unemployed, 47 year-old who lives in a small village with her cat, Pebbles.  View her stunning performance here.  It would be demeaningto say that this moment was “heartwarming.”

It was fearless.

Boyle turned a deaf ear and blind look to the naysayers and disdain that was immediately apparent from the instant she took the stage.  She instead chose to let her singing do the talking.  Les Miserables‘ “I Dreamed of Dream” hit harder than a freight train, in a fashion that could’ve made Javier smile (indeed it stole a genuine look of pleasure from Simon Cowell’s typically icy demeanor).  Isn’t it a thing of beauty when heart is backed by talent?  Boyle not only bared her soul, but put on a performance Broadway singers could be envious of.  What people might have used to create a new William Hung (oh curse the day) instead became the newest favorite underdog story.  Droves of fansites have already surfaced all over the internet.  Demi Moore has reportedly publicly revealed she cried while watching the clip with husband Ashton Kutcher.  Susan Boyle has been crowned as a hero and inspiration to millions of viewers all over the world.

Is it a little over the top?  Maybe.  But how can we criticize the phenomenon when it’s source came from the honesty of the heart?  You see, people want to believe “you can’t judge a book by it’s cover” isn’t a meaningless comeback toted by “fat kids” and disillusioned mothers all over the world.  They want to believe someone can be respected for their true worth, that others can look past the inadequacies that mar their image and see the things that make them special (and lovable).  How many times has someone felt misunderstood, misrepresented, or unfairly judged?  How many times have people dreamed of the chance to show what they’re really made of?

The response may seem like overkill but please pause before shaking your head.  After all, it’s the simple things which seem mundane and painfully unexciting at the moment that become the focal points of history.  Paul Revere’s midnight ride.  Rosa Parks sitting in the front of the bus.  Five soldiers hoisting a single American flag.  A lone, grocery-clutching man blocking the way of four tanks outside Tiananmen Square.  Susan Boyle’s performance is surely not the same kind of deed but her simple act of courage has become a rallying banner for ordinary people who dare to dream when the world says “wake up.”  And that is part of the same spirit which each of those special events carry.

What’s happening with Susan Boyle’s performance on Britain’s Got Talent is a social phenomenon that occurs whenever the public happens upon a new Cinderella story.  Does it border on mania?  Perhaps.  But if it gives someone a reason to believe maybe we should respect it for what it is.

Sometimes the world is a cruel place where ordinary people like Susan get overlooked or ignored.  But every once in awhile there’s a crack in the clouds and life smiles on an unlikely individual.  I say those aren’t moments for us to sigh and look down on the “opiated masses” who are so naively inspired.  I say those are moments to treasure and learn, so that one day it won’t be an exception–

–it will be an ordinary miracle. 

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I apologize I couldn’t embed the video directly into the post; embedding has been disabled by request.

Note:

This isn’t the first time something like this has occurred on Britain’s Got Talent.  The 2007 season gave stage to an awkward amateur opera singer named Paul Potts.  But what’s special about this case is that Susan’s situation involves an untrained voice who carries a nearly unbelievable ugly duckling past that sounds like it came straight out of a story book.  A victim of oxygen-deprivation during birth, Susan suffered constant ridicule from peers growing up because of resulting learning disabilities, naive demeanor, and appearance.  She once tried to pursue a singing career but stopped to take care of her mother who fell ill.  Her performance on Britain’s Got Talent was the first time she had sung after her mother’s death in 2007.  According to Susan, she entered the competition because of her mother’s urgings in her final days.

http://www.susan-boyle.com