It was by a woman who is a friend of a friend and recently laid her 7 year old son to rest after a 7 month battle with cancer. I had been following her heartbreaking yet hopeful posts and praying for a miraculous recovery of her baby however there obviously was a different plan for her family.
I had been complaining about having to go to Columbia for an agent showcase audition for my youngest. I literally have been dreading this trip for several weeks now because it fell smack in the middle of my vacation with my family. Aside from the fact that I'm not the one pushing a talentless kid to go on American Idol only to make a fool of themselves on National television. I am far from one of those stage mother's trying to live vicariously through their kids.
As many are aware, my daughter Torie is bound and determined to become famous. And honestly, she really is quite talented. In fact, the combination of her talent and tenacity can be annoying yet at the same time paints a picture of possible success for the little drama queen. Regardless of what happens, at the end of the day, she has a dream and she is relentless in her efforts to follow it.
In a nutshell, after reading the woman's post of losing her son, I realize that her baby boy's dreams have been unfairly and unexpectedly distinguished. I am ashamed of my reaction to my daughter's hopes and dreams as that mourning mother would give anything to have her son's young dreams come alive again.
Before I tucked Torie in, she rehearsed her monologue several times until she was satisfied with her performance. And I am taught yet another lesson as she thanked me for taking the time to take her to her audition during vacation. She told me that regardless of what the outcome is, she will walk away knowing that she worked hard, tried her best and will learn something along the way.
She continued... "But Mommy? You really need to get on board with me because I'm going to be someone and I AM walking out of this thing with an agent and will be very busy with other auditions. I love you, goodnight. We have a big day tomorrow and need our sleep."
I kissed her and said goodnight in awe of her confidence, gratitude, balance, strength and sensibility. With or without an agent, my kid already IS someone. She is my teacher.
I am sad for those who's dreams are lost for their children (living or not). Before tonight, I happened to fall into that category. I have been so negative about Torie's efforts towards stardom. Tonight, I'm officially jumping on Torie's dream wagon no matter what. Not for anything more than her knowing that I am beside her in her adventure but most importantly, to learn a little bit more about really being SOMEONE!
