Life Lesson: Danielle's Dilemma

I regularly tell Naomi and Danielle, "this is a life lesson", when they deal with something less than ideal. It is to let them know that they are learning and growing and equipping themselves to handle all kinds of situations in life. Danielle had a good one recently -- a conflict in her schedule, and there was no obvious answer nor was there a compromise - she had to pick one or the other.

The conflict: Band pre-UIL concert v. final volleyball tournament

Danielle initially made a decision to miss band and go to volleyball -- she told her band director, but the band director requested that Danielle "compromise" and miss part of volleyball in order to make it to the first part of the band concert. (I was slightly miffed that the band director didn't honor Danielle's decision, but I digress...)

So, that launched Danielle into a bigger reflection process. Danielle went through the pro's and con's of attending one and missing the other. She had a commitment to both band mates and volleyball teammates. There was no "moral" decision to make, although, she did feel bad for leaving her fellow French Horn buddy alone at the concert (the third horn was out due to disciplinary restrictions...soooooo that person is "excused" for doing something wrong but Danielle is not?). She agonized over the options for several hours, and went back and forth trying to find a good way out if this quandary.

She ultimately decided to go to volleyball and skip all of band (which is what she truly wanted from the beginning).

In hindsight, it was a good choice! If she had not been at volleyball, her team would have had to play short-handed with only 5 players! And because she was there, she helped her team win the championship! AND, it turned out that she was selected by her coach to receive the Fighting Heart Award from for the season! (Again.)

The consequence for missing band: She did get a zero for that grade. Also, the pre-UIL judge did comment that the French Horn section was weak (no surprise there). 

NOTE: If the band event had been an actual competition (not a "mock" activity), Danielle would have likely decided differently. But thankfully, that was not the case!

My hope is that she learned something through the process, which will help her in the future when she is again faced with a tough decision.

In the meantime, I hope her predicaments are few and far between and she is able to do the things she enjoys most!