This is Nico Osorio. Nico is like any other high school senior. Nico has graduation and college on his mind and is slowly advancing through the process of growing up. But Nico is not concerned solely about graduation nor college; not about his grades or even class in general. Nico has much bigger issues to deal with than a typical senior would.
The first thing that strikes you about Nico is his eyes. His stare is the kind that demands attention; the kind that you can feel burning through you. It is the kind that can be altered with the slightest of change in his expression. It is a gaze that can break you down and then, with the slightest alteration, build you back up again. Nico’s seemingly inconspicuous eyes seem like any other set of eyes at first glance, lying hidden behind a pair of thick-rimmed glasses. But this is only a camouflage that keeps the secret weapon within his eyes just that, a secret weapon.
This story is about the transformation of follower to leader. The change one undergoes when introduced with responsibility. The alteration of one’s personality when given authority. It is about a kid who maybe grew up too fast; or, rather, grew up too much. It is about a student becoming a teacher and dealing with the benefits as well as the drawbacks that come with the title of “Leader”.
Who is Nico Osorio? He is what we would call a “student leader”. He is the kind of student that has really evolved somewhat into a teacher. Though still technically a student himself, he has his own students whom he has a special kind of teaching position over, for he is not bound by the mundane, tedious rules that the district-employed teachers must follow. Nico’s students, by technical standards, are really his peers; simply fellow students enrolled at his high school. But perhaps by mere power of will or by some unknown fate, Nico has become much more than just a student; he has become a leader.
It is a Tuesday afternoon on a bare field on the north end of the school. A practice for the marching band is underway. The sun is beating down hot on the band members scattered around the field. The students all study packets of paper that indicate where each student needs to be on the field. Nico stands on a 6 foot tall aluminum podium at on the sidelines. He too is studying a chart. He occasionally calls out to a student on the field to correct a positioning mistake. When everyone has found there spot, the mood seems to go stagnant; everyone is just waiting. This is when Nico addresses the band as a whole, “Everyone listen up!”. Nobody speaks.
“I want you to remember where you are now and go back to your last set. It takes you sixteen counts to get here…Go”
The band hurries back to their last position and waits for further orders. Nico calls them to attention , barking an order that has obviously been heard many times by the band. Nico begins a count and the band moves; following the steady beat, being dictated by every count. When the band reached its destination, Nico simply yells, “Go back and try it again.” It is a phrase that has been heard numerous times before during the practice and one they will surely hear many more.
Of course, what makes Nico interesting is his behavior outside of leadership. Even when not faced with pressing issues of responsibility or dealing with the routine of instructing, Nico carries an air of responsibility, a mood of discipline. It does not seem to be a switch that Nico can turn on to be a leader, but a permanent change that he has made. The simplicity of childhood seems to have left Nico early; perhaps too early.
