Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Alexander's New Career



I've just had a message from Miss Price, who is Alexander's teacher. This is disturbing. I usually only get a call from her when there has been a problem.

I wonder what Alexander has done now?

Miss Price is there in the classroom. No one else is there. It's going to be one of those 'teacher-parent' discussions that everybody dislikes.

"Sit down, Lieutenant." she tells me, although she can't seem to look me in the eye.

"What is it, Miss Price?" I demand to know, "Has Alexander been throwing clay moulds across the classroom again? If he has, I can assure you he will be severely punished..."

"It's nothing like that." she tells me, " The fact is that today was Career Day. We asked each of the pupils what they wanted to be when they grew up."

"I know what Alexander will be when he grows up." I say confidentally, "He will be a Klingon warrior, fighting for our homeworld."

"Umm...that's not what he said he wanted to do." Miss Price quietly informs me.

"Well what DID he say he wanted to be?" I ask.

"A ballet dancer." she whispers and suddenly look away, as if she has found something to do, as my anger increases.

"A BALLET DANCER!" I shout, "What Klingon has ever been a ballet dancer! He will bring shame and dishonour to my family!"

I storm out out the classroom, and go to my quarters, where Alexander is.

"Why did you tell Miss Price you wanted to become a ballet dancer?" I ask my son.

"Because it's true, Father." he says, "I admire the grace and poise this elegant art brings. If you see it, you will be aware that it is a wonderful joy to ...."

"It brings shame, not joy, Alexander!" I angily tell him, "You should be learning to maim people with Klingon weapons, not dance around a stage with women in 'Swan Lake'!"

"I have been studying this book, Father" he tells me, "It is called 'Ballet for Beginners'. All the classic moves are there. All the steps are there; I'll go to the holodeck and start dancing with Margot Fonteyn and Darcey Bussell."

I hang my head in despair and decide to visit Deanna for advice.

I reach her office and enter.

"Worf!" she says, "What a pleasant surprise. My next appointment is in half an hour, so we might be able to have a little fun until then.."

"I haven't come for that, Deanna," I tell her, "The fact is, I have a problem with Alexander."

I inform her of everything that has happened.

"Worf" she mentions to me, "Every child has ambitions that sound unusual to the parent. Just let him follow it through. He may soon lose interest in it and be involved with Klingon weaponry or folklore again. Alternately, he could grow up to be a very good ballet dancer."

I groan and put my head in my hands.

I trudge back to my quarters, where Alexander is watching 'Giselle' on the videoscreen.

It can be very difficult being a parent.

22 comments:

Ciera said...

try driving a school bus, Worf...it's make your security job seem like cakewalk!

and hwey --- even football players do ballet!

no_average_girl said...

poor alexander...caught in the middle of his dreams and his father's expectations

Running2Ks said...

Hey, ballet helps football and basketball players.

It could be good--or at least unexpected--in future battles :)

Jon the Intergalactic Gladiator said...

Hey, balet isn't that bad, Worf. Remember when everyone thought that gymnastics wasn't a manly sport until the movie Gymkata came out? Man, Gymkata was AWESOME!

Helen Louise said...

Why do I now have an image of Worf as a striking miner? The worrying thing is, I can actually see Alexander as a ballet dancer. That's just the sort of thing he'd do.

Professor Xavier said...

HA HA Ha Ha ha ha . . (reducing to a polite chuckle). A Klingon who wants to dance ballet! Poor Worf. He's never going to be able to show his head in public again.

xtessa said...

you can say that again...

at least, he'll develop strong muscles and be very flexible... may prove useful in warfare.;)

Radical One said...

look at it this way.... mabey he thinks he's training for ballet, but perhaps in the end he will use his training, because he's going to become a champion in martial arts.

and thanks for stopping by my blog!

Raehan said...

Chin up.

: )

Vegeta said...

ahahhahahahaha! Eh Don''t worry about it they sometimes go through strange phases. I was afraid my son would become a ballet dancer with that girlie hair of his.

FRIDAY'S CHILD said...

Alexander must have been thrilled with what he has been reading. Who knows it will come out to be your expectations. Too much pushing might come out to be negative. Tolerance means letting another person live uncriticized as they manifest all of their human foibles and personality quirks.

Trunks said...

Girlie Hair? Um Father look at yours, it's just goofy looking.

Mike Jones said...

Today's ultra-modern tights don't look so bad on a boy, so I wouldn't worry. It's probably just a phase...er... or not.... lol

dddragon said...

Well, it could be worse. He could want to be Wesley.

Maybe he just wants to meet girls and throw them in the air. Or is that figure skating?

Oh, see, it could be MUCH WORSE ... he could want to be a FIGURE SKATER!

Trinity13 said...

Just get him around Wesley Crusher...then he'll want to start maiming people again!

Jaime said...

*snort of laughter*

Ah, but what if they did a ballet of Hamlet in the original Klingon?

Jardena said...

Worf shouldn't worry, it probably is a phase. And honestly, have you ever looked at ballet dancers? All muscle. And with such a high girl to guy ratio, he'd never lack for interested women.

Lori said...

It can be very difficult being a parent....and really fun at times!!!

It's hard to imagine him in a tutu...LOL

Have a great day!!!!

Chrixean said...

Oh my, I must say he has made a very unusual career decision there. But then again, Alexander's training in ballet may indeed prove to bevery useful in battle later on -- balance, poise, stance and being able to bend in seemingly impossible positions. It may even someday save his life! Think about it.... :-D
But I must confess, if my son said the same to me, I.WOULD.FREAK.OUT.

Master Yoda said...

Too early to worry at this point it is. However, if a tutu he starts wearing, worry you should!

Jean-Luc Picard said...

Enemies may fear Alexander coming at them on his toes with his bat'leth...or collapse laughing.

M. C. Pearson said...

Ha! Reminds me of Monty Python and the Search for the Holy Grail when the son only wants to sing. "STOP THAT! STOP THAT!"