It was a funny thing, for most of junior high Anna was very opposed to continuing band in high school. Even as we discussed her schedule for the upcoming year, she didn't really want to continue. So yes we nudged her a bit, nagged a little for her to give it a try for the first year, just the basic band and if she didn't want to continue after that, she could stop. Then out of the blue, just before eighth grade ended, she decided to attend the marching band meeting. This was a surprise development, we went to the marching band meeting and saw the well-made promotional video and Anna decided to join marching band.
This was the same girl who said previously, "I'm never joining marching band, marching band is like a full-time job." The first couple days were rough, not knowing how things worked and where to go and how to act, but after a few weeks she was warming up to it. This was due, not in small part, to the band matching up Seniors to mentor Freshman. By the time band camp arrived-- note, I didn't know band camp was really a thing--she was all in.
Saturday was the last marching band performance of the year at the University of Illinois, it was about 20 degrees below zero outside and the wind was a brisk 30ish miles per hour. We froze as we watching the band perform, and we respected Ms. Anna's request that we not acknowledge her in any way. If you ask her how the band did, she will tell you they had a bad run. She is more critical of the ensemble than the band director! What I saw was all the kids giving it everything they had all season long. In the aftermath of the season finale, Anna has now been hit with the cold that has been going around school for weeks.
Moral of the story, nudging a teenager to try something, to push themselves, can work. Really, this also goes for adults, especially those long past the high school years. Give yourself a nudge, try something new, push yourself.
xoxo
