Achievements
Voice
My ballet journey began when I was in kindergarten at a local culture studio. It was in the upper grades of elementary school that I first wore the pointe shoes I had long admired and began to truly think about pursuing ballet seriously. When I entered junior high school, I gained weight rapidly and often went through painful experiences. Even while facing many frustrations and hardships, I never gave up, and I was able to come this far thanks to the support of my mother, Ms. Mae, and many other teachers. My mother is not the kind of person who spoils me just because I am her daughter. However, she is the one who praises me the most and values me the highest. She even made two costumes entirely from scratch for me and supported me in every possible way—she is truly my pride. Furthermore, Ms. Mae gave me many opportunities, even though I was not fond of participating in competitions. In particular, the encounters I had with many wonderful dancers across prefectures and even beyond national borders were truly a blessing. And there were also times when, even past midnight, Ms. Mae stayed by my side to listen whenever I sought her advice.
She has been my daughter’s ballet teacher for ten years, since she was four years old when she started taking lessons, and has been the most trusted advisor for both parents and children. In her lessons, she always told her students that she wanted them to become wonderful and attractive women through ballet, and I was impressed by the way she tried her best to teach them about the importance of greetings and good manners. She also gently encouraged my daughter when she applied for junior high school at her alma mater and when she went abroad to live in Japan. She spoke enthusiastically about the importance of ballet and ballet studies at the same time, as well as her valuable experience living abroad and how her English skills would be useful in the future. The teacher has always been there for my daughter at every milestone in her life. I believe that it is thanks to her teaching that my daughter, who was shy more than most, is now spending her time as a confident Japanese student at school and ballet classes in the United States. I hope that my daughter will grow up to be a woman who can help people around her, just like her teacher, while walking her own path.
