SHAKERIA MAYNARD believes that in life a lot of people just exist when they should be living. But she has decided that she does not want to have a boring eulogy.
So she is bent on being the best she can be while on earth. And the manner in which she handled herself on the way to winning Miss Holetown 2011 last Sunday night was a perfect example of the 20-year-old living her life to the fullest.
Maynard, who was sponsored by Bajanfuhlife, said that during the night of the pageant, her “state of mind was probably the worst” because things seemed not to be going her way.
“But my philosophy is when life gives you lemons, make fruit punch. How or why? Specialize in the impossible,” she declared.
“The other contestants could tell you that I had no sleep the day before [the pageant] because my state of mind was probably the worst. The night before the pageant I was rehearsing in the middle of a car park in St James because we were staying at a villa in the area. Then after rehearsals I had to go and rest because I had to get to my hairdresser for 5 o’clock in the morning.
“Then, I couldn’t sleep so I stayed up and started to get so worried that I went and I woke up the queen [Miss Holetown 2010 Sakina Alleyne] and Ashley Simpson [another contestant] and I said to them I need to pray. I fell asleep for half an hour and then it was time to go the hairdresser. From the hairdresser I went back home and then it was time for grand rehearsal and after grand rehearsal it was time for the show,” Sunday’s queen recalled, admitting that she was speechless when she was announced as the winner.
Maynard, also the winner of Miss Teen Barbados 2009, told WE MAGAZINE that the quote “Find your passion and let it do good things to you, for you and because of you” inspired her.
Indeed, her enthusiasm for drama was very evident on Sunday night when she immersed herself in her character and captivated the crowd during her dramatic presentation Bajanfuhlife, with which she won Best Talent.
“When I am in character, I am in character. I forget Shakeria, I forget school and I am in character. On that night I was a distraught wife who got up out of her bed and found that her husband was not there and his clothes weren’t in the closet.
“So the first thing I thought to do was to frantically run outside and see where he had gone and he was outside on a drinks crate sitting down with his suitcase packed. Due to the economy and the climate changes, he wanted to leave the island as if where he was going things would be any better,” said the third year psychology student at the University of the West Indies.
Maynard is not only a student. She also works part-time, is a football player and showcases her drama skills at local events. She has a tough schedule, but she knows that being a successful individual requires time management skills.
“I told [fellow contestant] Shakira Boxill that we come here and look at each other and we only think about looks but a pageant goes deeper than that. You have to exhibit a certain level of intelligence and a certain level of skills.
“At the end of the day no matter care how pretty you are or how good you can walk, if you can’t speak, you can’t get your points across. And you can’t be a good ambassador for your country or for anything without intelligence.”
