Schoolhouse Rap

Well, of course I attended Thursday's talent show, all three of my kids were in it (we have the free kids meals from Boston's to prove it). Lauren really impressed me, she had her Fairy Song all memorized, but she prefaced her song with a story.

"You all know Peter Pan...." she begins.

I kind of think she acts like me, in a way.

And then Taylor, who was petrified since the day after she committed her talent to paper. "It's okay," I told her, "you don't have to perform." Secretly, I was disappointed, because when she sings "Twinkle, Twinkle" she makes up her own music. So what if she belts it like Britney or Hannah, it's the same soul that I noticed, my sparkly girl she's a star.

Even cuter is when she insists the lyrics are, "just like a diamond in the sky".

After two violinists, a pre-teen girl sang an accompany to a CD. Taylor scoots over to me and whispers, "Mommy, I need you to go home and get me a CD."

"You don't need a CD," I assured her. To further help matters, three more young girls stood up between the gymnast, the rapper, and the cellist...every one singing "Twinkle, Twinkle." Should I worry that public schools don't seem to be teaching more nursery rhymes? Probably.


Her stage persona was hiding though, her voice safely
a whisper.

And then Colton, his plan was to do gymnastics once he read the idea on the sign up sheet. Then later, he thought he might do magic, since I brought him home a deck of cards from the dollar store. My boy lives in the moment, so during the car ride to the library he decided he was going to do a "secret act". And you better believe it, I was surprised!

My face turned beet red, much darker than tomato, I so should've known my boy better. He took the "splits" idea from Mary's act (it had brought oohs and ahhs), if only he'd thought to bring a hula hoop, like she did.

The wave-your-arms-frantically threw us all off balance, then swish, the final surprise!


However, the rapper (not my child) was the act I was most looking forward to. What better way to get straight to the heart of a modern child, than to have him or her write a rap (also known as a spoken poem).

Guess Maxine's right, today's media really does shape our children's goals. Any moguls out there interested in revising your ten year plans, I'd be happy to bet the social security of your grandchildren.