MB

I wasn't sure what I was going to write about tonight.

I admitted something to myself tonight and now I am going to admit it to you.

I wanted a kid who was as good as Z is at piano and who could practice as much as she did and learn as quickly and as much as she did without any kind of stress or damage because she is just that good.

I admit it felt special.

But it was stressing Z out and there was no reason for it.

In my defense there was more to it than just my pride. I was more than a little intimidated by her teacher who was also feeling special to be connected to Zoe while she was performing so well.

I also trusted her teacher too much. But she was coming from the place of training Z to compete and perform and be a professional pianist someday (probably at a young age.) Since that is not going to happen then there is no reason whatsoever to stress Z out about this.

I don't mean that Z should never experience struggles or have to exert a lot of effort. But her teacher had her on a track that is really unnecessary and could be damaging Z's natural talent and passion for music.

I think the acting thing helped open my eyes about this. I think some people in Z's life were feeling vicariously special about Z doing the acting and it bothered me that anyone would let that cloud their judgement regarding what is best for her. And of course as the parent it is most important that I don't let myself get caught up in the excitement of what Z can or could do to the extent that I allow negative experiences to harm her.

I am ashamed for my complicity in stressing my girl out. I am grateful that I wized up after only one year and challenged her teacher and fixed things. And I am feeling very protective of my girl tonight.