Talent...?

I'm embarrassed to have to reference to The Princess Diaries, but since I've remembered this passage for all these years, I suppose it's worth mentioning.

In one of the books in the series, Mia worries that she is a talentless loser. All of her friends are brilliant; in addition, they are all multi-talented. Mia's genius boyfriend, Michael, is a technical/computer whiz, her friend Boris's mastery of the violin amazes even apathetic high school students, and Mia...well, Mia isn't great at anything in particular. She pours out her woes into her "diary" constantly, however, and at the end Mia finally realizes her talent: SHE CAN WRITE! And there the story resolves.

I was incredibly irritated at the end of that book. Mia can write. So what? So can I....But, unless I become the J.K. Rowling of my generation, I don't think I'll be able to look at my talent as an especially wonderful gift. I feel very whiny, but I would like to point out that I've had many opportunities to develop some great artistic talent.

Over the years I have:

-Taken ballet classes
-Gone to art camps
-Gone to sewing camps
-Played piano
-Sang classical Indian music
-Played violin
-Taken classical Indian bharat natyam (dance) lessons
-Played percussion

But one after the other, I realized I had no real aptitude for any of these arts. I could barely draw a decent bowl of fruit, much less actual people, and my mom dropped art lessons in a hurry. My dabbling in the musical arts left me with a strong appreciation for people who can in fact play an instrument or sing, while I faced the bitter fact that I didn't have a musical bone in my body. I was frustrated and overwhelmed with these artistic intrusions, and one by one I begged until my disappointed parents dropped the classes.

Even today, they sometimes harangue me about my failure to take one of those lessons seriously. Little do they know how much I wish I could have just picked one of those lessons and tried to excel at it.

Maybe today I would be able to move around on the dance floor without looking like a klutzy Bigfoot. Or maybe I would be able to pull out a well-worn instrument and just play for the hell of it, and for the enjoyment of my family.

What can I do???? Well, I can follow directions. Which means I'm half-decent at baking.

Possible future career: Baker?