She Was Also Meant To Dance

It's not often that I find relaxation in returning to work after my weekend but that's what I'm feeling this afternoon. It's been a busy few days off for Tammy and me. Between us, we've gotten a ton of yard work done and by that, I'm referring to our flower gardens. They're all in!

We acted on advice from my sister Jackie and purchased most of the flowers for our gardens this year at the Minneapolis Farmers Market. She'd recently been there and was impressed with their quality. I trust her judgment. We began our flower buying frenzy there and we weren't disappointed either. In fact, we ended up going back for a second helping after checking out a few other shops including Getens where we typically buy nearly everything we need.

Mom came by on Thursday afternoon as I was putting the finishing touches on our work. She'd stopped by to drop off some moonflower sprouts that I'd expressed an interest in. She took my arm and I slowly walked her around the yard. She's noticeably slowed down since making this same walk last year. It amazes me though that she's still getting herself around to the extent she does.

Here's a video for the archives to look back on at some distant time in the future.

I'm finding my stride walking, covering over 46 miles this past week. I was telling Tammy that should I ever find that I'm restricted from ever riding outdoors again because of my blood condition it won't be so devastating to me as I'd once imagined. I can actually see myself substituting walking for riding even considering that it will be much less intensive. Not that I want for that but I do have my CompuTrainer that is regularly kicking my butt down in our basement. I'm grateful for my health. I'm managing.

Tammy submitted her resume' to a few places this past week and got a call to interview for a Personal Care Coordinator position working with the elderly. This would be an ideal job for her as she has such a heart for the geriatric population. It's a full-time position though so that will take some adjusting but if it's something she's excited about (and she is) I can see her actually enjoying going to work rather than the dread she feels now.

It was a sad time two years ago when Rachel danced in her last recital with Brenda's studio. Accepting that her dance performing days were pretty much over, I don't think any of us realized then how well the fledgling ballroom dance team at UMR would fill the void. As co-captain, she's stepped in and taken a leadership role in seeing the team blossom into a group of committed students who all put in a lot of hours to make it work.

She's got so much of Tammy in her. Her determination to make sure all the dancers had blue suede shoes for their most recent dance being an example of that.

The UMR team meets and takes instruction at Dahl Dance Center in Rochester. They had their final performance of the dance season last night as part of a fundraiser for the Ronald McDonald House in Rochester. Tammy had to work but I was able to make it and film her group's performance. Rachel joined me in the back row and we watched the show together before she took her turn onstage as part of the last dance of the night. Watching her perform is always a treat but what was most meaningful to me was seeing her interaction with the other dancers from the studio which included many shout-outs to friends onstage. She's definitely found a new dance home.

Since she was 3 years old dancing has been an important part of her life and now it seems clear that it somehow always will be. I have no doubt that she'll manage to find a way because among so many other things in her life she was also meant to dance.