It’s only too late, when you are dead

When my mother was 18, my grandma sent her to the Pedagogy Institute. After some years, she became a teacher. She was never asked what she wanted to study or what her mission was in life, or what her dream was. You know, my mom was born in 1917. When she was taken to the Pedagogy Institute, negotiation about your desires and your calling was unheard of.

She was a great teacher, in fact she still is. She always looks for the opportunity to teach something to someone. She is fanatic about the appropriate use of language. She is fanatic about good manners and immaculate handwriting.

Having said that; teaching doesn’t bring her that sparkle in her eyes that art does. She shines when she sings, when she reads a poem she wrote, when she dresses up in a brand new outfit, when she is in the spot light... She was made for the stage!

For many years she just sang under the shower. She wrote poems without showing them to anyone. She was a hidden talent. She was hidden behind obligations and fears. She didn't dare to go out and show her talent.

Now, in the 8th decade of her life, she has finally given herself permission to do what she always wanted to do: be in the spot light. She is doing so many things! She sings! She sings from French songs to passionate boleros from the 60’s. She writes her own poems and actually reads them in public… She was an extra in a movie and played a short part in another one. She’s more alive, more herself than she has ever been.

She’s is such a great inspiration for me; for anyone who knows her. Maybe her story can be that kick inspiration that moves you out of the shadows and into the light. You will be the same age you’ll be whether you start learning to play the piano or not, whether you start learning to speak French or not, whether you start your trip around the world or not… No matter how old you think you are, start with a small step, the smallest possible. You don’t need to quit your job. You don’t need to move to another city. Just start! Start today!

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