Ballet and Urdu

My daughter, Izzy, loves ballet. I remember when she was four and we were eyeball deep in covid times, she started an online ballet class and spent most of it on the floor in a fit of despair. She wanted it SO BADLY, her expectations were SO HIGH - she was going to dance like a prima ballerina and sing like Elsa with NO INSTRUCTION WHATSOEVER!

Also…this may not surprise you, but at the time, Izzy only spoke one language. That same month she started Urdu, had one lesson, was one of two Izzys, didn't understand a thing and loved it. She had no expectations, no predetermined end goal - she got to just show up, have no knowledge of the subject and enjoy it.

Think about that for a minute. Because it doesn't just happen to Izzy.

What are your recent ballet and Urdu moments? I'll go first. My ballet moment happened during that same pandemic-infused week when I created the vision of a perfect homeschooling mom in my head and then crashed and burned BECAUSE THAT STANDARD IS IMPOSSIBLE. My Urdu moment was...well...Urdu. Because, I decided to let go of my expectations of me as a mom who signs her kid up for Urdu and just be in the awkwardness of not knowing ANYTHING.

So, this week, and every week, take a moment to let go of an expectation. Take a moment to just show up and have fun. Because we all know that we need as much fun as we can get.