Proud Papa
MercurialGirl had a good day at her latest speech meet yesterday: she placed fourth in the poetry category. This is no mean feat: poetry is perhaps the toughest section.

I was in speech for grades 7-12, and then I went on to judge speech for many years, and poetry seems to draw kids who can really speak well. It's hard to judge, too.

This is MercurialGirl's second year in speech. She's still learning the ropes: how meets work, the mechanics of a good performance -- that sort of thing.

She's also learning that there is a certain way to "act" at a meet, and that's important too. Her inability (or unwillingness) to "stay within the lines" has always been a struggle for MecurialGirl; she wants to do everything her own way, and being in speech is a good way for her to learn that a little conformity isn't a bad thing.

I haven't seen her speech. I didn't see last year's speech either. She doesn't want me to see her perform yet. That day will come, I suppose. Most Patient Wife and I are veteran performers, and I think MercurialGirl wants to do it on her own without any help from the 'rents.

But I'm happy that she's doing so well. The kid's a natural storyteller, and a bit of a ham as well. (Sort of like one of her parents, but I'll let you guess which one.)

This Tuesday will be a day of reckoning of sorts: I'm judging at an afternoon meet and I'll see her interacting with her team and I may even have the time to catch her performance. The question is this: if I do watch her, can I be a dad instead of a judge? Should I?