Teri was 5. As younger siblings do, she looked up to her older sister, the dancer, in a big way. Sara was 4 years older and was excelling in ballet, tap and jazz.
So we enrolled Teri in the same dance school and she really seemed to enjoy the lessons and her new friends. She was now, of course, a dancer, like her sister. And Teri very much looked forward to the climax of her first dance season, the year-end dance recital this school put on.
If you've ever been a dance parent, you of course realize that the obligation is quite large. Aside from the weekly lessons, scheduled on different days in our case, there is the extra investment of time and money preparing for the 'big event' - extra lessons and rehearsals, fittings for the completely different head-to-toe costume required for each dance number and a parents meeting for each dancer to make sure everyone was on the same stage come recital night. Baseball parents have it easy!
As fate would have it, Teri had surgery to lengthen her heel cord a few weeks prior to her dancing debut. But that didn't stop her from lugging around the heavy cast trying keep up with the other performers. That's my girl!
The big night arrives and in a flurry of hurried activity, we deliver our girls backstage complete with special hair do's and a full coat of stage war paint and we take our seats in the auditorium.
The place darkens, the curtain rises and the show begins with the performances of some of the advanced students. They beam with pride showing off the stuff they had worked so hard on all year long. Two of Sara's dances were slated and as always, she didn't miss a step.
Then, to the "ahhhh, aren't they cute"'s of the packed house, the curtain lifts to reveal Teri's class of little tykes all in a line looking nervously around under the bright lights. At one end of the line was Teri, with her bulky cast in plain view and her hands tucked in the white muff in the starting position for "the Muff Dance."
The moment arrived and music started. Teri didn't. She just stood there, still as a statue, while her friends slipped into their well- rehearsed routine.
Was she nervous? Did she forget her steps? Did her foot hurt?
Then, as if on cue, she gracefully took her left hand out of the muff and raised it to her face, inserted her index finger into her nostril and with the precision of a Texas oil driller, began a full-scale exploration of the orifice that seemingly wouldn't conclude until she hit paydirt! That's my girl!
Needless to say, the place erupted into hysterical laughter that overrode the loud music. I began to slither down in my seat trying not to be among the majority who were splitting a gut at the spectacle and add to the embarrassment that Teri must have been beginning to feel.
Suddenly, as if it finally registered that the non-relenting roar of laughter was directed at her, she ran off the stage. I was already hustling out of the theatre to the backstage area in anticipation of having to do some creative parenting and intense consolation.
With a lot of tear drying and a little coaxing I managed to convince my little dancer to "get on with the show", where she performed the rest of her numbers, without using her fingers.
The next year, she played tee ball.
? Rick Beneteau
Rick is co-creator of the breakthrough Make Every Day A Great Day Program. Read the powerful, life-changing testimonials and discover how this revolutionary product can dramatically change Your Life too!: http://www.makeeverydayagreatday.com/yes
shuttle from Midway Glen Ellyn ..Does the homework battle so typical with your hyperactive or... Read More
Anyone can become a parent; there are no tests or... Read More
Lead is one of the most dangerous toxins a person... Read More
So you want to be a mum? Every time you... Read More
1. Create... Read More
Every summer our daughter goes to summer camp. She looks... Read More
How often do you think of family life as an... Read More
Imagine yourself lying flat on your back, totally strapped down... Read More
Do any other reality TV junkies remember a show on... Read More
Q. My daughter is a junior in high school and... Read More
It's funny how people seem to think that they have... Read More
The formula is pretty straightforward: energy in/energy out. This is... Read More
Checking accounts are an absolute necessity these days. You can... Read More
The Flow of WaterWater is essential for life on the... Read More
In the beginning, having children was just a byproduct of... Read More
I am sure that this list can be jogged and... Read More
Pool safety should be on the minds of every parent... Read More
The popularity of EEG Biofeedback Training continues to grow both... Read More
How well do you really know your child?There is so... Read More
My husband and I have a 12-year-old daughter who wanted... Read More
Let's be honest! When it comes to parenting, men expect... Read More
Is there a difference between lazy and unmotivated? Why do... Read More
Today the little red school house is not what it... Read More
No matter how old your children are, you have an... Read More
Although, not a well publicized statistic, childhood obesity has more... Read More
shuttle from O'Hare North Chicago ..If your child has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder then at... Read More
'I felt great until I walked into the classroom -... Read More
Parents are always looking for ways to open up the... Read More
You are in the final round of your favorite game... Read More
Not many things are more upsetting than discovering that your... Read More
I am a dad. I have been now for over... Read More
Prenatal intelligence, also known as fetal intelligence, has become a... Read More
For the first year or two of life outside the... Read More
I could nearly fund my children's future education if I... Read More
You may think once your child has gone off to... Read More
ADHD comes in differenty forms, or types. What... Read More
Chaim Ginott was a schoolteacher whose ideas and observations helped... Read More
Well first off, please to don't institute the ? hour... Read More
For parents, keeping our kids safe is a constant top... Read More
Being in a competitive world, the lowest qualification to secure... Read More
Although many parents become frustrated as they try to maintain... Read More
Do you struggle to get your child to bed at... Read More
Thank you to all of our professional educators who dedicate... Read More
I have a bit of a different response than most... Read More
Most of us recognize the continuing escalation of violence around... Read More
I know as a single parent or even with 2... Read More
In June, elementary school children across North America cheered as... Read More
When we consider that the word allowance means, "allowing for,"... Read More
Public education in the United States has never been equal... Read More
Diapers..Changing a dirty diaper is not the best part of... Read More
Parenting |