In the craziness of our life recently with back to school for all 3 kiddos while balancing work from home and in the field time – and developing the Managing Motherhood series each week, I am behind on some of our family’s big moments this summer.

Our theatre loving, song writing and singing little actress had her socially distant dance recital in July and I wanted to share my thoughts on this new experience as it was definitely a first and most hopefully – a last. Initially, I was not a fan. But knowing how much my almost teenage daughter had put on a positive attitude during her Spring Zoom lessons, watching her practice on her own the dances sent to her via video from her sweet teachers, I knew I couldn’t say no when it was time for the recital.

I’ve been very real about my frustration when it comes to this virus. We have done our part and continue to do our part by always wearing masks in public and respecting all the social distancing and #stayhomestaysafe suggestion. But this year has been one for the record books on so many levels. It totally blows. But, I’ve balanced all of that with the reality that I am an example to my children in how they will act and react to certain situations. So in being mindful and careful; wanting her to have her moment, I put on a happy face and off we went to her dance theatre where they had secured a performance space right next to the studio where she’s been learning for the past year since we moved here. We let the grandparents know so they could watch the live streaming and I gladly wore my mask to protect everyone else in attendance.

The individual dance rooms within the studio had been turned into viewing rooms for the parents with tape in the shape of squares outlining where parents could stand/sit to watch their daughter dance on the large screen TV that hosted the streaming of the recital. It wasn’t what we wanted. It wasn’t what these girls deserved at the end of a long and chaotic year where they had been preparing for their moment on stage performing in front of their biggest fans. And yet they rose to the occasion and performed their hearts out. Smiles hidden beneath masks, they did the best they could to rework dances 15-20 minutes before it was their time to perform. Resilience is something this generation is becoming quite equipped in processing and handling. That fact played out right before my eyes during the last weekend in July.

I am used to sharing the beauty and hardships and frustrations and chaos of motherhood – well, this is part of my chaotic journey of being a mother to the most beautiful young woman I know. And I’d be remiss if I didn’t chronicle it here on my blog because one day, when she reads this herself – I hope she will remember that day, fondly, and also know that she taught me so much about grace under pressure, embracing the situation, and finding the joy in every moment – even if it it isn’t how you wanted it to be.

To my Miriam: the grace at which you go about life is something I wish I had possessed at your age. I’m so proud of the young woman you are becoming and excited to watch you continue growing, learning and becoming who you were meant to be. While we had a rocky start on this journey of motherhood – you have shown me over and over, time and time again, just how grateful and fortunate I am to call you my daughter and how I will forever be indebted to Him, who made me responsible for you in this lifetime.

To Dance Theatre Parkland: thank you. The care, genuine love and sincerity you have for each of the girls at your studio was on display for their recital this year; a year in which you could have easily phoned it in and said, “we’ll make it up next year.” The preparation, the attention to detail and the arrangements that had to be made to accommodate our tiny dancers could not have been easy. As a Mom, and a former dancer, thank you from the bottom of my heart.

This pandemic cannot and will not take the moments we experience, away from us.

Will it shape our perspectives? Absolutely. But maybe that’s the purpose in all of this. I tend to lean on my faith so much more in times like these and what my faith and my belief in our creator has been telling me, over and over throughout each experience, is that maybe these moments are the ones that are teaching us life’s greatest lessons. That maybe – just maybe, these precious moments are being written for us by someone who’s love far surpasses our own understanding and comprehension, to teach us to cherish all of the little moments along the way; to be present over trying to be perfect, and to embrace the joy in every single one of life’s fun experiences, not allowing the suckiness of it all to bring us down. Rather, reminding us to be grateful, thankful and mindful of this season in our life. A season that is for sure testing us all, but one that I hope will make us all better in the long run.

Our little dancer is hanging up most of her dance shoes this Fall to pursue more musical theatre, acting and songwriting sessions but I’ll forever be grateful for the lessons she took and the teachers who impacted her life in a positive way. I learned a lot this past year too, that even in the midst of the crappiest and most annoying of life situations – a global pandemic – the show MUST, go on!

–Confessions of a Corporate Mom