So much depends on two people in rocking chairs on the front porch.
Yo Yo Ma was a cultivated cellist; a prodigy to be sure, but the inevitable product of his musical parents' efforts and their persistent attention. At 4, he would not be able to force himself to memorize two measures of bach a day without outside influence. No genius could do that. Each day his parents would probably remind, perhaps even force Yo Yo to practice the violin or cello or piano. He got better, and his talent and passion made him excellent, even prodigious. Now he is the best cellist in the world.
Sally could have been a champion runner. As a child, she beat all the boys in all the races at recess. She loved running, especially short distance. She was a little scared of running long distances, though. They took forever, and made her sides hurt. Her parents liked to sit on rocking chairs. Once, she went up to the front porch and asked her parents if she could join a track team. "Sure!" they said "why don't you find a team, and we'll sign you up." Of course, Sally never found the track team. At seven, she was too shy, too young, and had to much to do. Who could blame her? Sally continued to run for a while, but nobody really cared. A few people mentioned she'd be great for track, but it didn't matter. Those two people that mattered most, her parents, never really noticed. They were too busy with their own plans for Sally. They thought she'd make a good pianist, a good philosopher, maybe even good at rocking on chairs like they did, but not a good runner. They were too busy worrying about her health to see how much she liked running. They were too lazy to get out of their chairs to help. So Sally grew up and became just another person rocking on her chair, like her parents were. She never became the great runner she could be.
Sometimes I feel a little bit like Sally. But then I remind myself that if I really like something, I should do it regardless of how little my parents care about it. That's why I learned 5 clubs, and why I'm now learning 7 balls.
