nos·tal·gic

[no-stal-jik nuh‐] Show IPA

adjective

experiencing or exhibiting nostalgia, a sentimental or wistful yearning for the happiness felt in a former place, time, or situation.

nostalgic 

You feel nostalgic when you miss your childhood, people you know but haven't seen in a while or the things that bring you comfort, like the nostalgic memories you feel when you listen to the songs you loved when you were little.

 

What is it about December? It's always around this time that we're bombarded with memories. Some good some bad, but for the most part I'm referring to the good ones. Many of them are moments from our childhood. I'm talking about those memories that make you smile, for instance, going threw the cafeteria line in school and the lunch ladies wearing Santa hats for the holidays. 

There are many different memories I have cataloged in my head. Though I do indeed appreciate the ones I've gained year after year during this time.

  

It only takes hearing, smelling, or seeing something and it brings me right back to some fantastic memory. I'm mainly talking about one I had recently when I was watching the Nutcracker.

Everyone is familiar with the Nutcracker. Yes, it is a ballet, and the story is pretty simple. Here are the cliff notes:
"On Christmas Eve, a little girl named Marie/Clara falls asleep after a party at her home and dreams herself (or does she?) into a fantastic world where toys become larger than life. Her beloved Nutcracker comes to life and defends her from the Mouse King, then is turned into a Prince after Marie/Clara saves his life. " 

As I said, that was the short version. For the full story you can A.-go check it out if it is performing somewhere near you or B.- read about it on http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107719/synopsis?ref_=ttpl_pl_syn  

I became a dancer, yes, and I first started dancing when I was a kid. When I was six, I could see all the older dancers in rehearsal preparing for the performance and I dreamed of the day I'd actually be able to perform in the Nutcracker like those perfect ballerinas I watched. 

Growing up, always around this time, my mother would get tickets to watch the Nutcracker downtown. We'd get dressed up, go downtown, and watch as the Mississippi Dance Company performed. While watching the performance, I was taking mental notes on which piece I'd like to perform once I was old enough.

Well, once I hit the third grade my time had come! I was in my very first performance of the Nutcracker! For the next six years I would perform in the Nutcracker, and every year I would get a little better and move into higher roles. 

Right before I hit high school, I had finally gotten my technique pretty good. I was right at the point where I could finally dance with the big girls. Little did I know, but it would be one of my last performances before I hit college. You see, throughout my high school career I put dance on hold and was in the marching band as a flag girl.    

So here it was. We were performing the Nutcracker Thursday threw Sunday for two weeks. This was our last performance before the holidays. I'll never forget it. I had already gone threw three different costume changes, and had just put on my final one. As I went up the stairs from the dressing room to the stage, I could hear the music slowly come to an end right before the next piece.......Waltz of the Flowers. A piece I had wanted to be a part of since I was little. As the lights faded out, we all lined up backstage ready to appear once the lights faded back up.

 

 Music starts, lights go up, and like a waterfall we all cascaded onto  the stage in perfect unison. Awesome. Just as each girl seemed to flow onto the stage, one by one we  flowed right back off and were waiting in the wings backstage until we heard our different parts come on. I remember feeling excited, nervous, happy, and can still feel that serge of adrenalin coursing through my veins. My part in the piece was coming up. As a group of girls came off the stage, myself, along with four other girls emerged from the wings, dancing our choreographed part. To this day I haven't seen what we looked like, but I can tell you, it felt like we were  completely n'sync. That feeling, the feeling of being backstage, the feeling of just ready to bolt into the light, ready for the audience to see, and just ready to perform, that is one memory that will forever bring a smile to my face during this season.

What's yours?

Nicole