Friday, 19 February 2016.
Day 61
Months and months of dance practice and lots of other efforts, such as searching for the perfect dress and the perfect shoes, planning the perfect hairdo and make up – and the day has finally arrived!
The whole family is very excited with tonight’s special event.
Kristiina woke up at 6 a.m. to go to the hairdresser’s, taking with her the deep-red dress she is going to wear. She’ll be dancing in front of her whole school this morning and in front of all of us, the parents and extended family, in the evening.
Kristiina’s dance partner is her favorite classmate, Babel, a tall Syrian genius who’s grown up in Finland.
“Oh, mom! What if I make mistakes during the dances??”
Anna and Kristiina hug each other bye/see you later.
“It’s normal to feel a little nervous, my darling. But if you make any mistakes, just smile with your back straight, turn your head slightly to the side, let your gorgeous hair fly in the air, and I promise your false steps won’t matter that much. Believe me, linda…
“What people will notice is how confident, beautiful and happy you are.” — Anna reassures her.
Today is the Vanhojentanssit day in all Finnish upper secondary schools – the Ball of The New Seniors, a formal prom that celebrates the passage of the second-year students to high school seniors.
And it is absolutely beautiful!
So far, it feels that the best days since Anna’s separation have all started and ended with Christian’s messages. Today couldn’t be any different. Yay!
10:26 Morning. Still rough today but hopefully will turn the corner.
It’s your last day at school before the autumn break, so I wish you a good one! See you in 2 days (cough cough). 🙂
10:37 Thanks. That’s sweet of you to remember. 🙂 Can’t believe I’ll see you in two days. Hope you get lots of rest and feel better soon!
Teacher Anna is sitting with her whole school after lunch, watching a couple dozen of their countryside students dance graciously – though a bit stiffly. She feels emotional as she looks at them.
The beauty and the innocence of youth… May they be blessed and lead healthy lives, learning to be content in their search for happiness!
She’s grown used to sharing all kinds of things with Christian, so she sends him a video of the dancers.
14:43 I’m sure I’ll cry when see my daughter tonight! Felt like crying when I saw these pupils who I don’t even teach at all.
15:00 Ahh. That’s sweet. Better get the tissues ready!! 🤧 They have obviously been practicing hard.
One of those pupils is really tall!! Must be a basketball player. 😊
15:51 Hi! Going for the coffee power nap now to then get ready to see my very own princess dance tonight! 😊💃
Don’t forget the hankies. 😊
Yeah… I wouldn’t want to mess up my makeup!
How many do you have??
You’re cute!
Princess Anna!
Aww. Sweet! I have 3 (as do many South Americans). But I’m losing the last one once the divorce is through in July, my dear handsome Prince Christian.
Great. Good luck and enjoy. 😊
I have been sleeping such deep naps that I snore and wake up with my own noises.
💋💋 One for each tattoo. 😊
Mmm 💋!
18:30 Waiting for the dances to start!!
Anna sits in the audience with her mom, Riitta, son Joey, her sister Sarah (Kristiina’s godmother), niece Isabela and varamummo Liisa. They spot Mr. Pedro/Ex from a distance. Riitta cringes.
“Eurgh. Doesn’t it feel bad to see him?” Riitta asks Anna.
“No. I’m sure it’s very important for Kristiina that he’s here, mom.
“And, I’m moving on. Not looking back, but forward.” — Anna assures her. — “Can’t wait to meet Christian in two days. Two days, mom!
“Dating is fun.” — she smiles.
And the Ball of the Seniors is astounding.
01:57 Hey. Just got up. Of course now I can’t sleep. 😊 How did this evening go?
I’m feeling a bit better. Not been eating well though. Lost my appetite, so a bit of weight loss, I guess.
02:01 Hi.
02:02 Hello! You still awake?.
2:03 Yes, have been for 21h already. Since Friday morning 5 a.m.
21 hours awake! How come?
Happy to hear you’re feeling better!
Are you ok?
Yes, fine thanks.
I think I’ve been in bed 21 hours! OK. Not that much.
Oh! I knew I was gonna clean the house on Saturday – just decided to do it after the dance ball instead. This way, when I wake up, I’ll only have some minor things to do. 😊
How was it? Hope you wake up late. You are on holiday after all. 😊
Yes! But I’ll have to get up at 9:50 to move the car.
Your house must be spotless now.
The ball was beautiful!! And so much bigger than at my school (I think they said 126 couples were dancing there)!
2:09 Lovely picture. 😊 Did she enjoy it?
Yes! She was sooo graceful. Beautiful! Wonderful body language, smiles, eye contact. 😊 I felt so proud! Will never forget this night.
We never had balls at my school.
Neither did we. Too bad! Love Pride and Prejudice – the dances looked like they were from that time. And from Gone With the Wind.
© 2017 rf
Obs. All names have been changed, and chat messages were published with the match’s kind permission.
Obs. Day 61 to 62. Beautiful! Surreal.
The Chronicles of a Happy Divorcée 
Is the dance thing still a custom? I never knew there was such a formal event. I was too young to learn about these things when we left. And my parents, being pretty strict, would not have approved of us going to a dance anyway.
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Yes, a very very important yearly custom in all of Finland. And sooooo very beautiful! Worth watching if you ever visti Finland in February. Did you by any chance click on the link and watch the video (in the end of my post)?
When I was growing up, my parents didn’t put me in dance lessons for the same reasons. What a shame! 😦
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I did watch the video. Old world charm 🙂
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Beautiful video. And so good they were. Must have taken tons of practice. I can’t imagine this could have happened in Sweden. I think Finland is better in keeping some links to the past. We need traditions! 🙂
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Thank you, I was so impressed. Love this tradition! My daughter is quite visible and easy to discover if one has read the earlier chapters with attention.
The young people all looked fantastic! Some had more expensive hairdos and dresses than others. But whether they cost a fortune or not, I always think that the most beautiful ones are those who seem to be comfortable in their own skin, feeling pretty. The ones who dare to make mistakes and laugh at themselves and just enjoy the moment.
It is not the dress that will make the lady!
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Yes, I’m quite certain who she is. Beautiful and with a lot of grace and they are together a lovely couple. You should be really proud of her.
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Always!
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