Magical Moment 488, "Opposite"

I have so many magical moments that I accidentally see from my corner at the piano when I play for the Beginner's Ballet class. Here is another.

The 5 year olds had a substitute teacher, a serious looking, tall Russian man with a thick accent. A bit intimidating compared to their regular, petite ballerina instructor.

"How you make plie?" He boomed to the little girls. They struggled to understand his words. A few picked up on it though, and they demonstrated a plie, squatting clumsily in their white tights that sagged on their tiny bodies. They giggled at his funny voice, snickering through their nose behind their hand, as if that would mask their silliness.

At this level, the girls were still learning the difference between left and right. It was a 50/50 shot in the dark, and something they weren't too interested in getting it right.

"Fiyrst (first), we do combination to za right, zen to other side." He explained. I wanted to tell him it was hopeless, but instead I watched with a silent smile.

The girls skipped across the floor to the right, with no sense of rhythm to the music I played for them. When it was time to go to the left, the instructor wanted to double check his instruction.

"Now gyirls (girls), which foot we start with?"

They stared at him blankly.

"We just did right. So...what is opposite of right?" he coaxed.

A few girls timidly demonstrated with their foot. One girl muttered, "The other?" They all were puzzled except for one girl, who spoke boldly with confidence.

"WRONG!!!" She proudly yelled over the class.

Well, though her answer wasn't "right, " technically she was just that.