Tiny Dancer at 8...and again at 80!

As a society, we celebrate perfection... in the arts, Olympics, design, specialty cooking, sporting events, parties.
We relate to imperfection. It can be heartwarming and fulfilling using a different set of criteria or judgement...as in no judgment. Quite often, it is the spontaneous and unplanned misstep or two that can be just as appreciated as the perfect steps.

My [grand]niece is seven years old and is preparing for a dance recital. Most likely it will be three hours of song, dance, and sparkly costumes beaming out from beautiful smiling faces on stage in front of a captive audience.. I can remember attending her mother's starring performances some 30+ years ago. It is like a rite of passage.

What is most likely the best part of the show?

I nominate the little kid who is obviously out of step, moving in a direction totally different than the rest of the ensemble, and ultimately hits the deck with her too too above her head.

Today, this whole scenario came full circle.

I attended a hospital volunteer luncheon at a very nice restaurant in town. After the tasty meal and recognition awards were distributed, the entertainment took center stage. There were ten senior volunteers dressed in red and white who had agreed to showcase a couple of their line dancing routines. They get together once a week for the exercise, interaction and fun. And I commend them for their time and effort, but mostly for the good time that I had with a smile on my face and a song in my heart. In the second row on the far left was a beautiful little octogenarian who was clearly dancing to the beat of a different drummer...and she certainly was the highlight of the entire afternoon. Watching the dancers in front of her, and then those moving at her because she hadn't changed directions, she was just dancing up a storm. And the entire 'captive audience' was totally captivated by her innocence and charm. 'Dance recital gone wild' had come full circle...with an audience smiling at dancers they don't even know and enjoying every minute of it. Who was having the most fun?

That would be the 'tiny dancer' in the back row having the time of her life!

And so, I say ...thank you so much...to that tiny line dancer who danced 'outside the lines' and did it quite impressively. I cherished it, and you made my heart smile.