Who am I, mom?

    Well son, that's for you to decide.  Tonight instead of E1's class, they had the privilege of watching the Kansas City Youth Ballet dress rehearsal for their performance tomorrow night.  He really loved it, the leaps, the lines, the music....but I suspect dance may be heading the same direction baseball did a few years ago.  He'll be a fan, but it doesn't mean he wants to be a player anymore.
   He knows he "can" do it.  That's not the issue this time.  The issue is "does he want to work that hard at this."
    He already works hard at school, and takes great pride in his work.  He knows education is important, and strives to do his best.
   He works at playing his cello.  He loves that thing.  He takes pride in it.  He can do something beautiful with it without necessarily being center stage.  It is it's own reward, and doesn't suck so much time out of his life that he can't do other things.
      That what he's contemplating about dance right now.  In order to excel, he'd have to work not just at the dancing itself, but building up his strength and flexibility.  He also would have to be more comfortable being watched and to trust those around him more; it's really hard for an introvert to put himself out there that far.  He'd have to learn to let go of some of his perfectionism.  He'd have to have a thicker skin about peer opinion.  He knows these are good things, but are they good enough to get up earlier every morning?  Are they worth the cost in time & pain?  Is there another, gentler, avenue he could learn these things from?
     These are not questions I can answer for him.  He has to decide what he wants, and what he's willing to "pay" for it.  All I can do is be there for him, no matter what he decides.