Everybody needs a cheering section

At the annual N.C. Fourth of July Parade in Southport last Friday, a cheering section of sorts formed in front of Southport Baptist Church, where a master of ceremonies was stationed to describe each parade entry.

Every time a car, band or float passed by the church, the M.C. would describe the person or the organization represented, and, every time, a group of people behind me would let out “whoops” and “whoos” for them—whether they knew who the people were or not.

M.C.: “The mayor of Anytown, U.S.A.!”

Cheering section: “Yeah! Whooo! All right!”

M.C.: “The Marching Turtles High School Band!”

Cheering section: “Yay! Whooo-hoo! You guys rock!”

It made me think how nice it would be for all of us to have a cheering section in our lives to applaud our successes whenever we do something worthwhile or whenever our spirits need a little boosting.

Lose 10 pounds after weeks of dieting and exercising? “Whoooo! You rock! Keep at it!” your entourage of devoted fans will say.

Get a raise but can’t talk about it to your co-workers? Go outside and get a little applause from your cheering section.

Don’t feel like waking up on Monday morning? Get a boost of confidence from your adoring public: “You can do it!” “You’re awesome!” “Get out there and take on the world!”

Of course, you’d probably have to pay these people some type of salary to be there at all these moments in your life. And there would most likely be a logistics problem with them having to be at your side on demand.

Well, instead of a live cheering section, how about a voice-activated recorder that cheers every time you say a certain word? You’d have to be careful what you said, of course, so you didn’t start it cheering at inappropriate times.

And after awhile, your co-workers and/or family members would probably get a little tired of hearing it, especially if they didn’t have the foresight or ingenuity to create their own cheering sections. (Sore losers.)

I’ve decided instead of employing these expensive and complicated options, I’m going to start being a one-woman cheering section—not only for myself but for others, as well. Whenever someone does something great, and I’m around, I’m going to applaud and cheer until that person is appropriately recognized for his/her achievement, and unlike the aforementioned cheering section, I won’t even ask for a paycheck.

After all, if we don’t applaud and praise each other’s accomplishments, who will?

sarah shew wilson is a staff writer for the Beacon. Reach her at 754-6890 or swilson@brunswickbeacon.com.