Friday, February 26, 2010

To pursue a child's dream, how far would you go?

A hypothetical. You live in Turkey. You own a successful restaurant in Ankara. You make a comfortable living.

Your daughter begins skating. She's talented with the potential to be a champion, maybe an Olympian. But not if you remain in Turkey.

The way to nurture her ability is to move halfway around the world to Canada so she can be around the best skaters and coaches. You can't take your restaurant with you. Your friends and extended family either. You have limited command of English. So you're likely to end up in some menial job. A year after you arrive, your daughter might decide she really prefers to study the violin. She might meet a boy.

What would you do?

Tugba Karademir's father and mother moved. Last night,13 years later, she competed in the figure skating finals in Vancouver. Her goal was the top 10. She finished 24th.

Tugba's mom says, "It was a big decision. We never regretted it."

1 comment:

Jessie B said...

Watching the Olympics and hearing the commentators tell her parents' story, I thought to myself, "I don't think I could do that." I can't imagine the amount of pressure she has been under to perform, knowing what her parents gave up.