For the first time in a number of years we didn't attend a dance recital. Our Morgan has had to undergo a surgical procedure and was not cleared to dance. Even though we didn't go it was a bittersweet time. I have seen a few other photos on Facebook from various dance recitals. I do enjoy seeing the smiling faces of those little children, even those that aren't so little anymore, and reading the proud comments of parents and grandparents. Time has a way of slipping by us all and then coming back around to stare us in the face. It all happens so quickly. Now I'll admit I wasn't as aware this time that the recital was so near. The reason is a simple one, I wasn't taking Morgan to rehearsals and such. I have been blessed to be a small part of the process since she was just a tiny dancer. Morgan handled the situation extremely well, in a mature fashion I would say. She had made the decision to have the procedure and knew she would miss this recital. She has made me proud once again. I think she will dance again but the decision is hers to make. She is a teenager now and sometimes priorities change. Social circles are formed, broken or modified. We can only give her space to grow and offer guidance when necessary.
I took her first pair of " ballet " shoes and combined them with a flower and picture of her in a shadow box. I just felt those shoes should be preserved. It is my hope that she will treasure and enjoy them as much as I treasured and enjoyed watching her in them. I do believe the greatest treasures are not purchased, they are created. Morgan has many trophies, medals, certificates and all the trappings of youth enjoyed by the youth of today. In my youth those items weren't handed out as readily. I can see where they don't mean all that much to the kids either. They enjoy receiving them, immediate satisfaction, but it doesn't appear to last. I encourage Morgan and her brother Mark to save those items, to place them somewhere for safe keeping. It is my feeling they will become more " valuable " in about thirty or forty years. At least that is the case with me, not that I received many awards. I don't like to talk about it much but I do have quite a stack of " Letters of Commendation " I received over my twenty year career in the Navy. They are sitting in a closet collecting dust. I don't know what else to do with them. It would look silly to have them all out. Maybe when I reach eighty or so that concept will change. I do believe it takes a good number of years for things like to make into the daylight.
And so recital season has come and gone. Now we face the summer months and all that entails. Mark has gotten a part time job, a real job and that is a milestone. Morgan is busy with her girlfriends doing whatever they do. The summer will pass quickly and the cycle will repeat itself. Morgan is off to high school this fall. No more grade school or middle school for grandpa ! So long Wildcats, hello Bulldogs ! Hard to believe I have watched Morgan dance her way from kindergarten to High school. I'm hoping she will decide to return to dance but the decision is hers to make. Only time will tell. I am reminded of an old Rolling Stone song, " time is on my side " but now I'm not so certain of that. Go, fly little girl and dance if you like I'll always be around to support you. Time has a way of getting away from us all. I do hope there is time for at least one more recital.
I took her first pair of " ballet " shoes and combined them with a flower and picture of her in a shadow box. I just felt those shoes should be preserved. It is my hope that she will treasure and enjoy them as much as I treasured and enjoyed watching her in them. I do believe the greatest treasures are not purchased, they are created. Morgan has many trophies, medals, certificates and all the trappings of youth enjoyed by the youth of today. In my youth those items weren't handed out as readily. I can see where they don't mean all that much to the kids either. They enjoy receiving them, immediate satisfaction, but it doesn't appear to last. I encourage Morgan and her brother Mark to save those items, to place them somewhere for safe keeping. It is my feeling they will become more " valuable " in about thirty or forty years. At least that is the case with me, not that I received many awards. I don't like to talk about it much but I do have quite a stack of " Letters of Commendation " I received over my twenty year career in the Navy. They are sitting in a closet collecting dust. I don't know what else to do with them. It would look silly to have them all out. Maybe when I reach eighty or so that concept will change. I do believe it takes a good number of years for things like to make into the daylight.
And so recital season has come and gone. Now we face the summer months and all that entails. Mark has gotten a part time job, a real job and that is a milestone. Morgan is busy with her girlfriends doing whatever they do. The summer will pass quickly and the cycle will repeat itself. Morgan is off to high school this fall. No more grade school or middle school for grandpa ! So long Wildcats, hello Bulldogs ! Hard to believe I have watched Morgan dance her way from kindergarten to High school. I'm hoping she will decide to return to dance but the decision is hers to make. Only time will tell. I am reminded of an old Rolling Stone song, " time is on my side " but now I'm not so certain of that. Go, fly little girl and dance if you like I'll always be around to support you. Time has a way of getting away from us all. I do hope there is time for at least one more recital.
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