Color Piece - Kadampa Meditation Center (going to a different place of worship)

The building located at 609 Truman St., Arlington, Texas, doesn't look like anything special.  It's a red brick building with two large white columns surrounding the doorway.  There's not large sign and the parking lot isn't of a normal size.  If you weren't specifically looking for that address and without looking closely, you would probably just pass by without even glancing.

However, if you do look close enough, you will see a small banner in front of the building.  The building is actually the Kadampa Meditation Center and it's a Buddhist temple.

When you walk in, you are asked to remove your shoes.  It's optional, of course, but it's recommended and it's respectful to do so.

There are only eight people partaking in the service.  The walls are white.  The atmosphere is calm and relaxing.  The temple is currently building a shelf for all of the adorned statues so for now, they are off to the side.  However, they are painted gold and look like royalty.  There is a statue of Buddha and two other statues of other prominent gods in the Buddhist religion.

There is a row of ten chairs facing the alter.  The alter holds a picture of a man wearing a red and gold robe, who I later found out is the leader of that particular sect of Buddhism--Modern Kadampa Buddhism.

The leader of the service, who is wearing jeans and a T-shirt--nothing special--has a laptop sitting at the front of the room.  It plays an important role in the service.  The prayers, which are in song form, are presented on the laptop.

Following the prayers is a 20-minute meditation period.  The meditation requires those present to sit and clear their minds.  It's a time that you are supposed to concentrate on your breathing.  Other than the noise from the air conditioner, there is no noise.

After meditating, there are more prayers that follow and another 6-minute meditation period.

The whole service lasts for a total of roughly 50 minutes and ends in prayer.

Mini Profile - Jule Nelson-Duac (Fine arts major)

Whether she's going through a costume change in less than three minutes or is part of the final dress curse, which is where the performer has a bad dress rehearsal but has a good opening night, her love and passion for theater shows in everything that she does.
Jule Nelson-Duac, a junior theater major with acting emphasis, said she loves getting the chance to perform and to send a certain message in front of large audience.
"I love theater because it's an outlet to express messages that would normally not be spread," Nelson-Duac said. "Theater is a form of communication that can speak to everyone because it's about showing truth and reality on stage, which you don't see much of in real life."
Nelson-Duac's favorite role that she has played while at TCU has been Belinda Blair in the production "Noises Off." Although she wasn't originally thrilled when she got casted for the part, she said it eventually became one of her favorites.
"Even when you don't first like the role you've been cast, you learn to love it and embrace it," she said.
Her dream role is to play Catherine in the "The Taming of the Shrew." Catherine is portrayed as an extremely powerful woman who doesn't take nonsense from men. She's someone who is ahead of her time, Nelson-Duac said.
The best part of the TCU theater department is the people. It's as though they are one big family becuase of all the time they spend together, she said.
Although a lot of people just see theater as acting, Nelson-Duac said the skills theater students learn are not only applicable in the theater world, but also in life, in general. These skills include different forms of communication skills and public speaking. Theater students naturally become well-rounded individuals, she said.
However, the late nights and long rehearsal hours can take a toll on the students.
"On top of rehearsals, we have to do our other schoolwork and it's sometimes hard to accommodate time for everything that needs to get done," Nelson-Duac said. "During show weeks, sometimes we're in the theater from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. and it can be very stressful."
After she graduates in May 2010, Nelson-Duac said she's hoping to go to New York City to pursue her dream career.