When I Was One
When I was 1 the world was fresh and new.
At 2 the I began dancing through life.
3 brought a second sister.
4 was no bore and 1986 had little significance but 6…at 6 I was cleaver as cleaver and wanted to be 6 for ever and ever.
I flew through 7, right into 8, into dancing solos in jumpers and bowl-cuts galore.
9 turned one family house into two.
10 brought valuable lessons, like to always keep your mouth shut when changing your baby brothers diaper, especially when he’s hyper.
11 was heaven.
After homeschooling all my life, 12 carried me into public school and quizzes, cliques, small town life in the bible belt.
13 tested my conviction in a thousand ways.
Trains, planes, and automobiles; 14 was spent seeing the countryside slide by.
15 was independence; first boy friend & big sister with a car.
Sweet 16 brought the end of public school for me, I had better things to do with my time; dance, art, boy-friend, life.
17 was the best year of my teens. I found my voice from the back of a raft yelling at my crew as a whitewater raft guide.
Performing, teaching, choreographing, 18 was full of dance.
At 19 we admitted it was real and deep and couldn’t/shouldn’t be ignored any longer.
20 was spent finding my way around my new desert home, Salt Lake City.
21 put a ring on it.
First race, I was 22 and raced 3.1 miles for a cure along side mothers, children, husbands, grandmothers.
23 streamed by in a groove of school, dancing, friends, hiking, living.
At 24 I became a college graduate…and had to figure out what exactly one does with a BFA in dance.
You dance professionally, of course. Portland welcomed me with open arms and 25 was an amazing year.
July 7, 2007. 26 years old and surrounded by 200 loved ones. My wedding day really was one of the best days of my life.
27 wore many hats; dance choreographer and performer, aerobics instructor, personal trainer, yogi, traveler.
28 was a physical year, a marathon, hiking in the Andes and the Himalayas, running on three continents, and wandering through 9 countries.
If 28 was in flight, 29 was planting roots. We found home in the mountains of Virginia, bought a house, opened a business, planted a garden.
Which brings us to the present. 30. I’m off to hike a mountain, dip my toes in the creek, revel in my health, and be treated like a birthday queen by my love.
Have a gorgeous day!
