It was the Ballet. I don't even have to think about it. From the time I was old enough to dream I imagined being part of a ballet troupe.

My mom would listen to Classical music as she cleaned the house. If I was nearby, the sound of Chopin (Oh how I loved Chopin) or Bach on the record player in the living room, never failed to lure me away from whatever I was doing.

There I was in front of the full length mirror in the hallway, with those beautiful wood floors, doing something I had only seen on television at that point in my life.

I would fly through the long hallway like a gazelle in the wind, twirl and stand in front of the mirror once more doing exercises such as the, Rond de Jambe which is a semi- circular motion using one foot on the floor. It was my favorite. I practiced until I could do it numerous times without getting dizzy.

I don't remember when my mom stopped listening to Classical music, or exactly when, what I wanted to be when I wasn't grow up got replaced by other things. But I had one glorious highlight of that time in my life. It was my first job as a young teen.

I was hired to train all summer to be an usher at the Civic Opera House in Chicago. They finally told us we would be ushers for two nights. It was the Ballet! I had butterflies in my stomach for the rest of the Summer. Those two nights are some of the most memorable moments in my life.

I was assigned to the balcony. But I didn't care. I could hardly perform my job as I watched the performances. They took my breath away. When there was no one to seat I would stand there in my usher uniform, gloved hand behind my back, my eyes trained on the stage. I had to contain the emotion of watching these graceful dancers move across the stage, as if dancing on air.

Beautiful, classical arrangements playing in the background just added to my awe. I was entranced. I noted every detail from the perfect hair pinned into knots on their heads, to the perfection of the movements of the hands, toes, feet, necks. It was another world.

Yes, I was carried away into a world of dreams, heavenly music and one of the most graceful arts in the world - the Ballet! The applause afterward was like rain and thunder! Bravo! I had chills running up and down my body. In the weeks after my job ended I day dreamed constantly.

I don't think I ever stopped wanting to become a ballerina, not in my mind. But somehow life steps in and the road you travel, gets complicated with so many curves, entrance and exit ramps.

Now, I write and there is no doubt in my mind that, what I wanted to be when I wasn't grown up, is hiding somewhere in the mind of this aspiring writer, waiting on its moment to debut. How, where? I do not know.

But that is the exciting part of grown up dreams and being a writer. You can re-create the awe of two nights at the Civic Opera House, watching the Ballet for the first time, in a thousand different ways. It doesn't get any better than this! So if you were waiting on sighs of regret that I never became a ballerina, I am happy to disappoint you. I have none.

Learn more about this author, Vanessa D. Alexander.
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