The class has been preparing for this for over a month. O’s been singing the songs they’ve learned for the past couple of weeks. She sings in the car, at home doing flips, in the bathtub. I love listening to her sing.
Alas, last night, while on the second step of a set of risers, Olivia did not sing. She stood there and looked around at her classmates, most of whom were singing, doing motions and having a great time.
I could tell Olivia was nervous. I knew it wasn’t the lights or the audience that made her nervous. No, it was the riser on which she was standing. She wasn’t comfortable up there. She felt unbalanced and unsafe.
But you know what? She powered through. She stood there and found her footing. She centered herself and realized that she wasn’t going to fall. She started moving her feet a little here and there during the songs. She stepped down to play her part when it was time and she climbed back up when her part was over.
Five years ago when Olivia took her first tentative steps, I never imagined she’d be climbing up risers, overcoming her own fears and standing there, straight and tall. For the first year of her life as an independent walker, Olivia had serious balance issues. She had no idea how to break a fall and fell often, landing on her face more often than not.
These days, she’s a flipper, a runner, a climber. And as of last night, she’s performer. She was so excited when the program was over and asked if I though her class would get to do another program soon.
I hope so. I love watching this girl shine.
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