Monday, January 2, 2012

Quitting Can Be A 'Good' Thing

Daughter Dear has decided she wants to quit piano lessons.

At first I tried to resist.  "How about keeping it up for the rest of the year?" I pleaded.

Nope.

She's burned out she says.  And I understand.

I am of the 'school' of "No one in this family is a quitter."  And as far as team sports are concerned, we are still in that school....because lets face it. Sports usually last for a few months and even if you hate it, there is a light at the end of the tunnel.  Piano can go on forever and ever, no end in sight.

As much as I hate to let her quit...I'm letting her quit. The more I think on it, one can learn a lot from quitting something.  What if you are in a job you hate?  Or a toxic relationship?  Quitting something requires inward thought and soul searching, evaluating priorities and coming to realizations that not everything should be 'forever'.  Everything has a season, so the Good Book says. 

So, despite her obvious musical talent, we are on a sabbatical from piano.  I'd rather her quit now and then, later on if she decides she misses it, go back.  I would really hate for her to grow to despise it.

And frankly...it works out in my favor to only have to carve out *one* hour of our school day for my Dear Son's lessons. 

Can anyone say "Win-Win Situation"? 

1 comment:

  1. Hi there! I am new to your blog, but I LOVED reading this! We are also at a point where my oldest son wants to quit something. :( He is 12, and is a second year Boy Scout. He has been a scout since he started as a Tiger Cub Scout when he turned 6. He has always given 100% to everything he has been asked to do, but in the past year he has decided that he would like to pursue other activities. While there is no law saying that he can't do Scouts AND something else, he realizes that he doesn't want to half commit to anything.

    It was very comforting to read that you are going through something similar, and that even though you don't want her to quit, you are letting her. I know I don't need permission or reassurance to let my son drop Scouts, lol, but reading your post did make me feel better. So thank you so much for sharing!

    Looking forward to reading more of your blog...

    Katie
    An accidental homeschooler who eventually realized it was the best “accident” of her life!

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