Wild Things

 Tziporah is like one of those small, scrappy dogs who thinks it's a big dog.  She really believes she's all grown up.  She was shouting at Ptolemy yesterday, "I'M NOT A BABY ANYMORE!!"  As if she ever was!  She was struggling to be bigger and do more even when she was five pounds of skin and bones!  She thinks she plays the violin.  She thinks she's a dancer.  She thinks she's a boss and a mother.  Confidence, she has no problems with.

 So it's nice when she actually has something of her own to do.  She loves her ballet class, but she was feeling left out because she had those darling little ballet shoes, but her class also requires tap shoes, and, having just hemorrhaged $200.00 on pointe shoes alone, I was still looking for a deal on some baby-sized tap shoes.  When Tziporah started lying to people ("Ya.  I got tap shoes today."..."My teacher gave me tap shoes today."), I finally outfitted her properly.

 Nana tap-danced until well into her 80's, until all the other members of her senior-citizen tap troupe essentially...died off.  At almost 98, Nana still has some moves, which she showed the little tapper.  Tizzy was inspired by Nana's singing and tapping, and tried some tentative rond de jambes.  (They're probably called something else in the tap world, but it's all new to me.)

 My caption for this Instagram of Nana was a quote from Isadora Duncan:  "You were wild once.  Don't let them tame you."  I'm not sure Nana has ever been wild, even for a moment.  Yet neither has she been tamed, in 98 years, of her passion for dance, music, art, beauty and expression.  I hope that Tziporah is able to retain and foster her passion throughout her life, just as Nana has.  She's off to a fiery start.  I swear to you that Tziporah went in the basement of the bookstore and came up with "Unleash the Power of the Female Brain," all on her own.  When I wanted to take a picture, she insisted on climbing to the top of the step ladder first.

 You are wild, Tziporah, and I adore it.  Don't let them tame you!