Beach Party

Yesterday we went to the beach to celebrate the end of the dance year.

Most people have started their summers, I still have another week.  Nationals is this weekend, and after that, I’m thinking things will slow down.  (They won’t….but I can think, can’t I?)

I wasn’t so sure I wanted to go to the beach party.  I have had my plate so full, that the thought of battling crowds and fighting for parking didn’t totally appeal to me.  But as I found many of my “mom” friends would be going, I bit the bullet.  They would be my spoonful of sugar in the thick of the medicine.

I have known some of these moms for years.  Yet as dance is only a few hours a week, we usually cut and run.  Drop the kids, pick up the kids and hardly ever see or talk to the parents.

This year with both girls on dance team, I have had a bit more time enjoying the moms (well, and dads too).   The competitions are farther away, and the days are longer, which affords us a bit more time.   However, that time is usually spent primping our children for the next go-round of dance.

This beach party would be a place where we could park ourselves, enjoy the view and actually “chat” for a while.  To be at a place where there is no schedule (other than to refill the meter). 

It was also a place for all the kids to blow off steam from the year - to don their bathing suits and actually play together.  It was great to see the kids interact in a way that was unstructured.

The thing I loved most about watching all the kids play together was that, though there are clicks (those who are most comfortable with each other), there was no age boundary or gender issue. 

When we first pulled up, one of the boys was with his parents, trying to park, and he rolled down his window and said “Hi Aspen”! 

Now, why this is a big deal, I don’t know.  But it is.  Here is a boy, initiating conversation, without pretense or want.  I loved it.  In my mind, this is two individuals on equal playing ground, with no issues to get in the way. 

As we parked ourselves on the beach, more people filtered in.   I watched the younger girls tugging on the older girls. Boys and girls building sand castles together and then it happened…..someone found a sand crab……I don’t mind the sand crabs…..but they didn’t all have to come show me (so I could take a picture)…..gross!!!

It was a great experience watching all the kids interact with each other on a different level.  The more I “play” with these kids, the more impressed with them I become. 

I know so many kids who have a hard time interacting, or even caring, about the younger generation at their feet.  But these kids embrace and engage.  It was heartwarming and fabulous.

This dance studio embodies what I want for my children.  There is a sense of family and caring that I haven’t experienced before.  Most people involved with the studio are families that have been there for years.  They want to help.  They offer to help.  It’s fantastic.

I know I have talked a lot about dance lately, because thanks to my kids; that has become my life.  However, it isn’t just dance.  It is my children’s’ development, both emotionally, and physically.  It is their sense of self.  The forming of their future.

Last night after most left; a few of us stayed until the sun was gone.   We chatted and laughed and had a very relaxing time. 

I ended up with a few extra bodies on the way home.  They are out for donuts now (daddy’s ritual).  I love these kids, and I’m so proud of who they all are, and who they are becoming.  I hope they continue on this path.  But even I can’t be naïve.  Life gets in the way, and the best we can do sometimes is pray the goodness continues!!!

Happy Sunday