My shoes make muted clicking sounds as I walked down the linoleum hall way. I have my ballet bag over my slumped shoulders. I’m done, I’m not even going to go to class today, I’m going to skip it and then drop it. I had decided this when I woke up this morning. Ballet was not enjoyable as I thought it to be, all the girls knew what they were doing. I’m a soccer player, not a dancer, no matter how hard I dream, how hard I practice it’s just not going to happen. I veer left and sit at my regular spot beside Peter. We both had a half hour in between classes so we sat and talked during the break.
“So, Mary, how’s your day?” The usual question.
“I think I’m going to drop ballet.”
“What? Why?”
I look down at my hands.
“It’s too hard, everyone else knows what they’re doing but me. I’m not having fun anymore and I’m getting stressed out. It’s not worth it anymore.”
Peter turns to face me square on.
“Let me get this straight, you’re quitting because it’s too hard?”
I mumble incoherently and nod my head.
“What are you going to do when another hard situation comes up, are you going to quit then. This isn’t setting a good pattern for the rest of your life.”
His words hurt my ears, my soccer determination was screaming that he was right, I’m not a quitter, and I’m not going to start now. I still wasn’t convinced though.
“So are you going to class today?”
“…maybe”
“Mary, you’re comparing yourself to the other girls. Yes they’re better then you, but a lot of people are going to be better at lots of things than you. You need to concentrate on you, not on them, and focus on making yourself better, forget them.”
“But it’s not fun anymore.”
“So it’s not fun because you’re not good at it… I can see how that would work. You like things that you’re good at, it makes you feel good, and gives you confidence and all that jazz. You can work through this. Or are you going to quit and look back ten years from now and regret not finishing this one elective class.”
I went to class.
And did you love it?
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