Chances

 Feb 19, 2021

Years ago, I had guided one of my best and brightest to perform a piece by Whoopi Goldberg. We had the audio version, but nothing printed. It wasn’t legal for our district tournament. I was young and naive. I went so far as to contact Ms. Goldberg’s agent. 

No dice.

We were moments from the tournament. Within a week, we found another script that was beyond reproach. It made me cry, it was so moving. My student mastered it quickly, and qualified to the national tournament.

I remember the guilt I felt at screwing up the original script, how hard we worked to make it work, and how I sweated bullets watching her amazing talent deliver one brilliant result after the next to get her where she always deserved to be.

I tell this story because I see second chances all around. I am the poster child for chances second, third, fourth...

If everything had worked out perfectly with that first script, I think of the lessons I wouldn’t have learned. It was the struggle and the sprint to the finish that makes the memory, 20 years later.

Grateful, sometimes, for the struggle.