I Have Seen The Future...

...And the future includes a rock star named Jacob.

Last week our church hosted their Vacation Bible School. I was working most of the week so couldn't volunteer, but I got to see the closing program on Friday, when the kids get to sing the songs they learnt for their parents/friends/family.

So there's fifty-some kids piled on the platform at the front of the church, singing and doing actions to a truly annoying and rather insipid song that's still in my head, and in the front row, there's a kid in a yellow shirt with dark hair named Jacob.

Seriously, this kid is Rick Florian all over again.

He's what, six? and he's running along the front of the platform in front of the group of kids, working the crowd. That was the moment I turned to my mother standing beside me and said, "He's going to grow up to be a rock star." I'd seen that move on YouTube from both John Schlitt (Petra) and Rick Florian and this kid pulled it off like a pro.

Then he took up residence in the centre front of the platform (downstage centre for those of you who know what I'm talking about) and did some fast footwork that brought me back to the official video for Independence Day. He joined what the others were doing for all of five seconds, then branched off into his own interpretation of the song again.

The thing was, he was not only completely in time with the music, he also managed (somehow) to make it work with the lyrical interpretation of the song (such as it was).

I have to admit, I was kind of in awe watching him. I work on a piece of choreography for months and it's only half as vibrant and well-done as what this six-year-old is making up off the top of his head in front of 200 people.

What got me the most, though, was his style. I'm telling you, it's Rick Florian. No back handspring (though I wouldn't bat an eye if I saw him do one next year), but that was the trademark Florian style.

So in twenty years when Jacob is headlining a rock tour, just remember you read it here first.