So I shall bore you some more…

While I wait for my stupid computer to load Adobe.  It’s taking it’s sweet assed time.

Glen arrived on the other side of the planet safe and sound early this morning. Tired and jet lagged. It was a 14 hour flight with a stop in Glasgow to refuel.

Saying goodbye was hard on us all, except the Emily monster, she doesn’t have a good grasp on time yet, and thinks daddy will be home soon. Morgan would not let him go, which clearly tore at him. I tried not to make a scene in front of the kids, but suffice it to say, we were the last ones to leave.  He even came back out of security for more hugs and kisses (Ok, he was filling a water bottle, but the excuse for more was an awesome one).

While we waited and talked and watched the kids all play together, I looked around at all the wee ones that were loosing parents. Most were fathers going over, but there were many mothers. My heart ached for them. One mother in particular was leaving her young son. If I had to guess, I’d say he was 18-24 months old. That had to kill her a bit.

Morgans report card came last week and it was confirmed that she’s a science nerd. Excels in math and science and needs to work a bit more in reading. She’s at the same level as the other kids for reading, but she is quite the mathematician. We’re to blame for that for not making her read more or reading to her more often. We do a lot of looking at fact books, and surfing the net to search out information on whales or snakes or whatever the query of the hour is.

She has also started piano lessons recently and she has absolutely floored her teacher. Since she strummed her great grandfathers guitar at 18 months old and didn’t plunk it like a normal kid would we wondered if there was something more. When we moved into this house, we discovered that it came with an un-tuned piano with a funky key. She literally spent HOURS creating melodies and words to those melodies.  A few times I asked her where she learned that particular song only to be told she made it up. We decided that piano lessons were a necessity.

I know that every parent thinks that their kid is special, and is the smartest kid ever, and will be the genius to cure cancer, or become an astronaut or win the Nobel Peace Prize (or all of the above), so I find it hard to balance my pride in her with reality. When the teacher starts using words like “natural” and “exceptional” and “genius”, I start to wonder if I should have been trying to help her develop her skills earlier in life. I wonder if the teacher is just hoping to get a lifelong student. I wonder if she’s really gifted. My grandfather was very musical, and his brothers were those annoying musicians that could watch and listen to an instrument be played then pick it up and start playing like they’ve been doing it for years.

This ability completely skipped me. I went through at least 5 instruments before I realized I just sucked.  I was surrounded by singing, guitar playing, piano playing and music loving adults on my mothers side of the family my whole life. Most get togethers turned into a kitchen party* I suppose this was to hinder actually talking to one another and the inevitable fighting that would ensue. I apparently require a different medium with which to express my own creativity.

I find it hard to discern if this is true talent that she has, that should be fostered or if I’m wasting money. I can easily see the teacher lying to ensure that her students keep going – the whole “convince mom and dad that their kid will be the next mozart” and laugh your way to the bank senario. But she seemed pretty sincere when she told me that she’d been teaching for 32 years and has never seen a kid so filled with music as Morgan is.

I told her that would explain why she never shuts up.

*I cannot beleive Wiki doesn’t have an entry for a kitchen party. Basically they’re large gatherings where people bring instruments and they jam, talk and drink all night.