ASL Club Concert

While our elementary school doesn't have a language immersion program, they do have American Sign Language Club. Liesel had such a positive experience last year, I made sure to sign her up as soon as I could for this year. The concert is always really short- just about 10 minutes- but oh so worth it! The kids go through the alphabet, the pledge of allegiance, a little story (this year it was about a leprechaun) and then a song which this year, was Fight Song.

This isn't my first time at the rodeo... we saw Liesel doing this last year. But something caught me as I watched Liesel signing with such unabashed passion. There was no self-consciousness in the way she expressed herself, and the only person she seemed to care about was me, her mother. She'd look my way now and again to see if I was watching, and then smile when we made eye contact.

I found myself hoping against hope that life won't crush that out of her... that she will always fight with the fervor she was signing... that she will always confront her challenges with the face of a warrior. Her intense expressions belied her tiny body, her fragile frame, her freakishly skinny limbs as she performed. She clearly had no idea the magnitude of forces that would beat her down. This is no mere child in her pretty dress and white tights, this is a fighter in the making. 

Tears sprung to my eyes and I was that mom... THAT MOM who was crazy proud of her kid, even though it may not seem like she did anything all that significant. It is just a 10 minute concert, after all. Brent smiled at me as I wiped the tears off my cheeks. He didn't need to say anything, he just knew.