Gimmy Some Shimmy!

It's been almost 12 hours since I participated in my first organized fitness class in over three years. I thought I would ease into it with a little Zumba - ahem, make that Zumba Gold (aka "Active Older Adults Zumba") - a class that promised to "focus on balance, range of motion and coordination. Come ready to sweat, and prepare to leave empowered and feeling strong." 

In sum: I didn't fall over, I explored a variety of motions, and I got to (was forced to?) move my hands and feet AT THE SAME TIME. And yes, I broke a sweat. That was my goal, right? To sweat and start the long road back to fitness. 

But. But. BUT. I did not leave "empowered or feeling strong". Instead, I wondered for a good portion of the class why I, a professional woman of 43, do not know how to get down with the shimmy (try to spell that after two glasses of wine...). Then, to make matters worse, while browsing the interwebs, I came across the YouTube.com video posted above and realize that a techie teacher has better shimmy moves than I (and probably most of America). It was great fun to watch, but didn't do much for my sense of accomplishment today. 

Instead I sit here with my tightening muscles and wonder where did I go wrong? Something has seriously been missing from my life's education and I think it comes down to the shimmy - those little life skillzzz that define your personal joie de vivre (cheerful enjoyment of life for you bums to lazy to click on the link). 

So what's your skill? What's that thing --- when you bust it out --- that means you are having a GREAT day and in the company of your besties? I used to think one of my skills was dancing (see above), but I think I need to consider a broader - and more physically feasible - range of options here. And while I am willing to work on my shimmy, I'm going to see what I already have in my personal arsenal of awesome and focus some attention on those skills too.

1. Setting a beautiful table:

Vintage plate, hand-stamped nappie, some twigs and blooms.

2. Finding beauty in the ordinary:

Roadside grasses. See that Spring green peeking through?

3. Growing things:

Paperwhites. So hopeful . . . 

So find your shimmy people (or your booty-shake). Life isn't a dress rehearsal and bringing your joy to the table is all you need.

Everything hurts (including my ego),

Stacey

P.S. Can't see the embedded YouTube.com videos? Head up to your browser bar, right click on the very British looking battleshield and click "load unsafe scripts". I promise it's just YouTube.