Zee Artiste

Mer is coming into her creativity these days. I don't know what the developmental stages are in relation to creativity, but for Meredith it has seemed as though the ability to create things that are truly hers has strengthened as her ability to spend time alone has developed. More and more often these days, I find her painting, or tying things together with yards of ribbon, or dancing. I guess, before kids, I would have expected this to come earlier, but now I see that it's happened at just the right time for Meredith. Funny how that works...

I will say, however, that the dancing has always been there. She's enjoyed that since she could walk. She dances to everything--and surprises us when she comes up with different moves that are appropriate to the music. One night we were listening to swing music, and she was suddenly doing something that looked strangely like the Charleston. Put on jazz and she suddenly develops these very flowing, stretching, modern moves. Put on the Bonnaroo dvd and she starts grooving as though she spent her womb-time at Grateful Dead shows (like her dad). All this aside, her first love--because of the costumes and pink that are involved--is ballet. And last week she started ballet classes.


It was one of those moments that re-initiates you into parenthood; a moment when you say "I can't believe I get to watch this happen." She loved it. She was glowing the entire time. She didn't stop grinning for the entire 45 minutes. I know that, regardless of what extra-curricular activities Mer chooses, there will be times that it will frustrate her, or me, or times when I won't want to drop her off and wait for her to finish, or times that the cost seems exorbitant. But for now, ballet classes are nothing but joy--for both of us.