The rehearsal room was all Janine knew. They know that since she was a little girl, her parents, who were ballet dancers, enrolled her in a ballet school. There, in addition to learning everything related to dance, she also learned to read and write. It was a very beautiful childhood for her because she lacked nothing in a material sense and she was learning to master the art of ballet, which was what she liked most in this life. Her parents were very proud of her because every day she tried harder and became the best in her class. Over time, she grew up and dedicated her life completely to this art. She traveled all over the world, participated in great theaters, danced for presidents and kings. Her life was perfect and she did what she loved. But all this way of living was going to end soon.
One day she had to give a performance at a famous theater. Many people traveled great distances just to see her dance on that stage. So she felt a strong commitment to satisfy them and to see her give her best performance. Everything started off great and people applauded incessantly. Many were astonished by how well she did. Well, in the middle of the performance she had to jump to pretend to be a swan in the air, because the performance was the dance of the swans. But when she jumped and fell, she felt a sharp pain in her knee. She knew that something was very wrong because she had never felt such pain in her entire career. She could barely finish her performance. At that moment, no one noticed because she knew how to work very well with one leg, so she used the other to finish the performance.
As soon as she got off the stage, she called her assistants and told them that she had to go to the doctor urgently. They asked her why and she told them what had happened to her a few moments ago. So they quickly hired a taxi and took her to the nearest hospital. As soon as the doctors arrived, they took an X-ray and were shocked. She had seriously injured several muscles in her knee. So they quickly gave her a diagnosis. They told her that she had to stop acting for a long time if she wanted her knee to heal, because the problems she had were serious. In addition to that, she would have to undergo an operation immediately, an operation that by the way was going to be very expensive.
That same day she had the operation. When she woke up from the anesthesia, she realized everything that this now meant for her. First she would have to cancel all her scheduled performances, at least for the next year. In addition, she would have to get used to a new way of life in which the ballet that was her motivation for living would no longer be present. All of this made her feel very bad and she even wondered if she had done something wrong to deserve such a punishment. But the truth is that it was not a punishment at all, but rather a matter of luck and too much abuse of her muscles. She had hardly rested the previous week.
That's if the doctors made it clear to her. She could walk again with rehabilitation, maybe even dance lightly, but the endless nights on stage with the perfect turns and high jumps she did could not be repeated, at least if she wanted to heal completely. You know, Janine listened to the doctor's words without reacting, but when she got home, she felt devastated, because almost her whole world had been destroyed because of this injury. It didn't take long for her to feel bad about being in that big house and so alone, because she never married because she dedicated her life and soul to work, so besides her, in the house there were only her servants. Many personalities came to see her and even some fans surrounded the house to express their feelings. This encouraged her because she knew that they had her in mind, but being in bed while others went to see her made her feel pressured and useless. That's why she decided that she had to leave there to a quieter place as soon as her wounds healed.
About 2 months later, when the stitches from the operation had healed and she could walk again, she decided to leave her home in the city to go to a small town where not many people knew her and she could be away from so many visitors and fans. Well, the new city was a small place, Janine settled into a modest apartment that looked out onto a park. So she spent the afternoons watching the children play, their distant laughter filling the silence that her previous routine had left, since there was no longer pressure, no schedules, no visitors. Of course, she still missed her life on stage, but for now she couldn't go back.
Well, one day, while walking through the neighborhood, she came across a building that was the community center. Inside, there was an empty dance hall that hadn't been used for years. So she decided to go in just to take a look. Inside there was a middle-aged woman who approached her. She was Maria, the center coordinator, who noticed Janine's interest. Maria told her that the centre had been empty for years and that it was a pity, as it was built to be used. But there were no teachers to teach the children the art of dance, so they had to move to the city to learn.
Janine said that the lady told her that because she knew her from television, and that she was offering her the job. She wanted to reject the idea instantly. Teaching ballet seemed like a cruel reminder of what she had lost. But you know, Maria's kind insistence began to change her mind. After all, she wouldn't have to dance ballet too rough, she would just have to teach how to dance it. So, she finally accepted. It was the opportunity she needed to feel like who she really was. Maria was happy because the center was finally going to open its doors again.
A day later, classes began, which were certainly a challenge. The children, full of energy and curiosity, bumped into each other, forgot their positions, and laughed when something went wrong. So Janine tried to remain serious, but little by little she realized that there was something charming about the children's clumsiness. There was one little girl in particular, Sofia, who seemed to always be lost, and was unable to follow the movements. However, every time she made a small progress she was filled with joy. So Janine saw that she had a future in ballet because she had a passion that other children did not.
After that, weeks passed and then turned into months and the group of children began to take shape. Janine designed a small choreography so they could perform it at a community center event. It was nothing elaborate, just a few simple steps. On the day of the presentation, as parents and neighbors filled the room, Janine watched from a corner. There was no nerves or eagerness to be on stage, but there was a desire for the children's performance to turn out well.
When the applause had died down, Janine allowed herself a smile. That night, when she returned home, she took out a notebook that had been stored away since her move. She began to sketch ideas for new choreographies, not for big stages, but for those who were just looking for the opportunity to learn. For the first time in a long time, since her accident, everything no longer seemed dark, because now she could use her talent to help others grow, and that made her as happy as when she herself could act.
