Missed One

February 10, 2010
3:25 P.M.
Coram, NY

Well, I missed one. I drove out to my son's house last night to see my grandson perform in his show, (which was great) and by the time we got back, the family was heading for their respective beds and sleep. Unfortunately for me, the computer is in the master bedroom and that ruled out my accessibility. I'm going to check with our professor this weekend and see if that could be counted as an absence. I hate to think I lost a high mark because I missed one blog day.

As I mentioned, I saw a wonderful rendition of Guys and Dolls last night. There were some lovely vocal performances, some cute shticky comedy, and some surprisingly good acting. It's interesting to watch people who are really into what they are doing on a stage. It is almost like they were born on it, as if it is where they live every day of their lives. There is no obvious nervousness like the tremor in a voice or the shaking of a hand. They move and dance and sing and speak every line as if they are the person they play, if only for an hour. Obviously, that's what separates the great from the good and the good from the mediocre.

I spent part of the morning outside shoveling with my grandchildren. I hate the snow, but something about those moments spent with them makes the day finer somehow. They don't know how much I enjoyed that time, all of us grunting and groaning as the plow came by and recovered the driveway we has just cleared, and if I tried to tell them, it may possibly destroy the perfection of the moments. They are in their teens, now, so a lot of what I express to them is taken with that adolescent attitude of "yeah, okay, shut up now, Grandma". I knew I was getting old when I understood the concept of youth being wasted on the young. I wish I had listened a little more and shared a little more time with my older loved ones when I had the chance. I wish I could remember the times they told me they loved me or were proud of me. I wish it had meant as much to me then as it would now...