Greta's dance teacher has on numerous occasions praised her for natural talent, and good listening skills, and then on the sly she would whisper to me "if only we could just switch her brain off". I knew exactly what she meant. Greta likes to be right, she likes there to be one way to do things, she likes to succeed at everything she attempts. It's hard for Greta to let go and dance. It uses the half of her brain that she normally shuts out with reason. When her teacher asked her to join the Spring recital and dance with a mostly older group of ballet students, we agreed, not fully understanding the level of commitment that it would require. There were some pretty hairy moments. Tired, overwhelmed (both Mama and child), weepy, but throughout the whole process her persistence, the part of Greta that holds herself at a safe distance from completely letting go, kept her firmly dedicated. There were moments when I peeked through the window into the dance studio while they were rehearsing, and thought "What were we thinking? They are never going to be able to get this together", but they did. And she let go. And I sat in the dark theatre, watching my daughter's accomplishment, and wept. Big proud Mama sized tears.
Greater than learning her dance steps with precision, were the lessons in friendship and support, and learning that little parts added to bigger parts make something magical. And once the hair gel was shampooed out, and the makeup scrubbed off and stored away, there was a little let down (both Mama and child), but the good kind of let down.
