“Here we go again…,” Kelly said slumped against the couch. Eyes rolled back. Arms crossed. Her dad was snapping at her in his usual “I’m right you’re wrong” tone. Saying things like, “Because I said so” and “You’re not grateful for all I have done!”
This felt like the hundredth argument this summer that had become oh so common between Kelly and her dad. It all started during what Kelly thought would finally be her so called summer of freedom before freshman year of high school. She was, yet again, forced into another summer of basketball camps. This time the camps were leading up to enrolling for tryouts right before school starts, tomorrow.
Her dad, of course, thought basketball was right for her, because he said so. Kelly didn’t want to play this year or ever again for that matter. She was grateful for all the time and energy that her dad put into basketball for her, but her love lay elsewhere.
As the lecture continued, Kelly’s dad’s booming voice was overpowering what felt like the entire block. Kelly seemed to drift out of the room into a daydream, her dad’s voice fading as her mind was pulled into itself and away from their living room. The room began to look hazy. Through the blur of shades and the distant loss of his voice, soft music began to play in Kelly’s thoughts. She envisioned soft shades of pink and green pastels of light as angelic dancers floated past like screens of an old movie drifting across the view. There was no moment in time that could be better than this one, and Kelly was perched on a hill just out of reach, a child on the sand yearning for the tides.
As quickly as she faded into her daydream she felt herself being pulled back to reality by her father calling her name. As the last dancer floated by so was she pulled off the sidelines of her hopes and back to her living room. Kelly realized that her dad was calling her name to give her a chance to talk, which in her memory was a first. Feeling so tiny and her voice so quiet, she began to try to explain her daydreams of dancers to this tall, strong beast of a father. But as her story spilled out of her she began to grow tall and loud, the beast before her shrinking in size, almost becoming human to her. For the first time ever she felt like she was breaking through to him. That he was understanding her passion and accepting who she was now.
The next day Kelly headed to school and onto the stage for the first time in reality and not a dream. The fights might continue, but for now she danced …
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