I've got a lot of thoughts about the things Milan discussed in her interview, but nobody's here to read a book so I'll keep it to just a few 😂

Edit:  wrote a book anyways lol

I'm so glad for her sake she was able to make the decision that continuing DCC wasn't going to be good for her, and that she had the ability to follow through with that decision.  I really wish that she'd have made the choice to retire earlier, after her last season was over, so someone else who desperately wanted it could have had that spot, but sometimes it just happens that way and it was better for her to have left (and graciously so), than it would have been for her to continue on under the circumstances.  I'm glad she's doing well - it sounds as though she has a bright future, and I hope she does.

I'm also glad that once she did meet with TPTB, that they were also gracious and as kind as they could have been, particularly Kelli.....but this is where I get aggravated with Milan.  

I absolutely feel like Kelli genuinely empathized with Milan when she made the choice to leave, and for Milan to question her sincerity or contend that she somehow doesn't really care is just petty.  There is no reason why Kelli should have known how Milan was feeling about it, and no reason to fake that she was horrified about how she was feeling or that she was concerned for her welfare.  To assume that she somehow did know or should have known seems bizarre to me.  Kelli oversees the entirety of the business component of running DCC, which does not entail engaging in-depth personal relationships with the members of the squad.  Kelli was her director, not her best friend or sorority mother.  

I know others may feel differently, but I have never had the impression that MTT is trying to imply that Kelli and Judy are all somehow personally close to the girls.  I do get the impression that over the years they do come to know each other and that there is a strong bond there, but it's a team bond, and not necessarily specific to individuals.  It doesn't mean that it's not real, or powerful, but it's not necessarily an individual thing either.  I think that sometimes changes over time, and probably depends on the level of engagement they have with each girl (show group, extracurriculars, etc).

Kelli is the director for the team.  It is not her job to make specific or special allowances for Milan or for anyone else regarding their extracurriculars beyond DCC, no matter how important or consuming they are (or Milan or anyone else thinks they are), and ranking your own experience as somehow more important than that of others (like looking down on the girls going to community college) is hubris.  Not having special exceptions made for you doesn't mean you're somehow not valued or that you're being picked on.  It means that you are a part of something larger than your own experience, and you can either take part as a member of a team, or not.  

That doesn't mean that DCC is more important than school.  What is means is that you don't get credit for being a DCC (or for going to school) if you can't handle the onus of what you have taken on in full.  There is no shame in not being able to do that, and every reason to make a choice (as she did), but to just expect everyone around you to make exceptions for you when you haven't earned the credit or proved yourself in either capacity is foolish.

And finally (last chapter), there could have been a myriad of reasons why Milan was not moving up in the triangle, not the least of which is that since the triangle is composed of a team of dancers with multivariate skill sets, looks, and leadership abilities.  To proclaim yourself as one of the best dancers (truthfully or not) just seems arrogant to me and dismissive of her teammates, which I think is terribly sad.

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