Filling Time: TwinLife Empty-Nesting

I’ve been watching my kid dance since she was born. Because she always had rhythm and she couldn’t stop moving around the house, I found a studio that welcomed 2-year-olds for their summer programming. That fall, at age 3, she started ballet at the local YMCA, and we have never looked back. She waited patiently for the premier studio in our town to allow her to enter at age 4, and she continued there until she graduated this past spring. 

For years she has loved ballet, contemporary, hip hop, and being in the studio’s company. She went on pointe shortly before Covid and practiced faithfully in our basement. That same year she became the studio’s “tech support,” as well as an assistant teacher. By the time she graduated, she was a full staff member, teaching mostly hip hop and cutting the music tracks for performances. If they had wanted her to, she would have taken over their marketing and done a great job. Basically, dance was a given in her life, and her studio was a second home.

So it was no surprise when, of all of her creative activities, she decided to keep dance at the center of her life when she went to college. It was a criteria for selecting the right school, and ultimately, it was what provided her with a scholarship. Because of her commitment, I knew that watching her dance would continue to be part of what would be filling my time during her college years (and I was secretly glad she chose a school that was drive-able so I could be at every performance!).

This past weekend I had the chance to see my college dancer perform for the first time. And while I have always been amazed by her on stage, this time was different. She had grown as a dancer, just as she had grown as a human. Doubly special to me was that for the first time, she was dancing on a stage where I had also performed.

Because, you see, my daughter’s right fit college is also my undergrad alma mater. Decades ago I chose it as my best fit, and it continues to be special to me. This fall I’ve been able to visit as a parent and as an alum, and it’s been magical. This past weekend, I watched my daughter dance on the stage where I performed in a musical my freshman year. It was both full circle and a forward launch – as I know she will continue to grow in her artistic life on that stage.

And watching her is one of the best ways of filling time.