My Boy

A few weeks ago the boy was in his 5th grade musical.  They performed Seussical, Jr.  It was funny and wonderful.  They all did such a great job.  Chris was a Wickersham.  For those of you not familiar with Seussical, that means he was a blue monkey.  (Those toe shoes really made the costume!)

For a boy who would rather be in a tree than on a stage, he ended up having a lot of fun with it.  I say "ended up having fun" because he didn't start out enjoying it.  Truth be told, I made him do it.  He didn't have to audition. He could have just been a stage hand or help build sets.  But I wanted him to have this experience.  There's something magical about being a part of a cast that's unlike any other experience.   If you've ever done even the simplest school play, you know what I mean. You work hard together, memorizing lines and learning dances and songs.  You goof off back stage and get to wear funny costumes.  A play puts you outside of your self.  And I think that's what really makes it a unique experience.  We all need to get out of our own head occasionally to see the world a little differently.  And then, of course, there's opening night.  The anticipation, the camaraderie back stage, the butterflies, and the eventual pride that comes when you take your final bow.  I wanted my son to experience all of this.  But like I said, he'd rather be in a tree hiding.  So I pushed him to audition in September and by November he was fairly mad about the fact that he got a part.  But I watched as his attitude slowly began to shift.  As the day of the 1st performance got closer, I could see him getting more excited.  He started saying things like, We really don't know that song very well or I need to practice that dance thing again.  It was the butterflies starting to arrive with the anticipation.  Then, finally, opening night.  He bowed with pride.  He came home happy and said, That was really fun.  And when the week was done he said, I'm sad that it's over.  That, right there, is all I wanted.  Not for him to be sad.  But to enjoy the experience enough to be sad when it's over.  He bonded with his friends in a way that they never would have on the kickball field.  (Though I very much think that kind of bonding is important too. Let the children be children, and such.)  But it was a chance for them to shed their strong 5th grade egos.  To be silly together.  To work hard together.  And to come to the other side of it a little bit stronger because of it.

They need a little extra strength building here at the end of the year.  We haven't even finished 5th grade and we're already deep in the paperwork of starting middle school.  A few days after Seussical was over, the middle school that the boy will be starting at in the fall had a night for rising 6th graders to come and check out the scene.  It was daunting.  For me.  Not for him.  He's too cool to be thrown off by bigger hallways, lockers, and changing classes.  I'm the one not ready for him to leave the cozy community of elementary school for the cold open spaces of middle school.  Not him.  He was impressed with the science labs, the huge gym, and the band room.  The band room?  As we were choosing classes he told me that he'd like to try out for band and possibly play the clarinet.  I'm sorry, what's that tree boy?  He was serious.  He really wants to play the clarinet.  And as much as I'm surprised by that decision, I'm also sure it had a little something to do with Seussical.  The boy who'd rather hide in a tree got outside of himself a bit and found that he liked it there.

I'll take a point in the good mom column.  Don't worry, I have enough in the bad mom decisions to keep me humble.  So I'll take small victories where I can get them.

My boy.  He's a mysterious old soul with a logical heart.  And I can't help but love him.