I took piano for many years. I kicked and screamed through all of my lessons, but my mom really insisted.

Kreuk’s remark frames childhood music training as something imposed rather than chosen: she “kicked and screamed,” yet her mother “insisted.” The humor underscores a common dynamic in which parents enforce disciplined practice despite a child’s resistance, betting on long-term benefits (musical literacy, patience, work ethic) that are hard to appreciate in the moment. Read more broadly, the quote speaks to the tension between autonomy and guidance in upbringing—how formative skills are sometimes acquired through persistence and external structure rather than intrinsic motivation. It also subtly credits parental steadiness as a shaping force behind later confidence and competence, even when the process felt unpleasant at the time.