I love figure skating. I love to watch people who can even stay on their feet circle the ice. But, last night on TV I saw the most graceful and beautiful performance ever when Kimmie Meissner skated to Nessun Dorma. Grace and choreography combined like never before to create a thing of beauty and a joy forever. Sadly the media line this morning is that this girl fell from grace. Apparently, she was last year's champ and she only finished 7th this year. She fell 4 times during the program that I'm speaking of, but for me it has never been about the jumping even though I know it's just an incredible athletic feat to be able to make. It's just that I'm always so much more impressed by movement and grace and by the ability to tell a story and in all those things Kimmie was perfect. I had tears in my eyes when she finished, not because she fell, but because her performance was so beautiful. She's a small person, but her expression and movement took up the whole stadium. She was simply marvelous. I'm sure that when she fell it must have taken all her determination to make the performance as beautiful as it was and in that way she was truly a champion last night.You know, my favorite line from Nessun Dorma is this... "stars that tremble with love and with hope" May those stars watch over all our dreams.
(photo from the Baltimore Sun collection)
