Facing Your Fears

I wouldn’t call myself a stage mom (well maybe a tiny bit), but I do enjoy the thought of my little girl performing on stage and sharing her charismatic personality with others.  The truth is, I was never bold enough to do so.  I was pretty shy as a kid and always struggled with public speaking or performing.  I believed my daughter would break that mold!  However, the reality is that getting on stage is as petrifying for her as it is for me.  Maya and I enrolled in music school last fall here in Madison.  We wanted to continue her piano instruction and of course, adding vocals was a major treat…because it was something we could do together.  I hear her sing all the time (in the privacy of our home) and yes, like many parents, I believe my child has that ‘inner star’ in her.  The truth is that when it actually comes time to get up on that stage and look out into the audience, here comes the fast beating heart, shaking hands and of course…the butterflies.  It’s completely normal and every single student in that room goes through it.  When we finally get through our performances, we breath a huge sigh of relief.  It’s very empowering afterwards but definitely not during!  Can I just say how proud I am of my daughter.  After the recital, when asked why she looked down at the floor throughout her singing performance, she responded “I needed to watch my feet tap to keep rhythm with my song (duh!)”  Ironically, it made complete sense and there was no need to question it.  She proved to me that no matter how scared she really is, this little 8-year old is always determined to do it all over again.  That’s enough inspiration for me!