Item #6 – Take a Ballet Class
40 Things for 40 Years in 40 Weeks: Item #6 (Be a Kid Again) – Take a Ballet Class
A lot of little girls dream of taking ballet classes and being a ballerina someday and I was no exception. Circumstances being what they were, it didn’t happen for me when I was younger and so I put that dream on a shelf and forgot about it… until now. When I created my list of “40 Things for 40 Years in 40 Weeks,” I thought why not try taking a class because it’s something that I always wanted to do. What’s the worst that can happen? And so I did last night.
Thanks to my sister Nancy, she helped nudge me into realizing this dream. She researched and found a location with an adult beginning ballet class near me, purchased a set of classes for me and gifted me the prettiest pink ballet shoes that she could find for my 40th birthday. I fully embraced the opportunity to not only try something new but also to be out of the house on a Tuesday night! I donned my best “ballet hair” that I could manage, geared up in my Lululemon wear, kissed my husband and kids goodbye and headed out the door.
I was warmly welcomed by the studio owner, the instructor and even another much more experienced student who was returning to ballet after a long hiatus, a fight with kidney cancer and a new lease on life. They were all so enthusiastic about my idea of trying new things and trying to complete my #40for40in40 list. I found muscles I didn’t know I had, woke a few that hadn’t been used in a while, laughed, connected, stumbled, made lots of mistakes but most importantly learned a few things.
One of the biggest lessons that came out of it was teaching my kids that you are never too old to try new things and learn something. Larry asked me if I was nervous about taking the class before I left and I answered him honestly that yes, I was. But I tried to remind him that sometimes we need to try something new or take a chance no matter how old we are.
So there you have it. 1 item checked off the list and 39 to go! Stay tuned… #40for40in40