But I Have No Special Shoes

I went dancing again. I even had sufficient warning to prepare myself, but I still didn't really know what to expect. A handful of people having fun, I thought, but I was wrong. I often am.

So the music began, something old and bouncy, I don't really recall which. And they started to grab audience members to come onstage. I've had my share of stage time, I admit, but very little of it has been while dancing. Sometimes it's just hard to say 'no', though; this was one of those times. I didn't want to say 'no' anyway.

On the stage, I looked around. I felt like I was standing in a sea of..something. Kids, I guess, 'cause I stood head, shoulders, and a large part of the rest of me taller than most anyone else on the stage. And boy, were there lots of people there. It was packed, but they all stood in a line. Except the few that were dancing in the line, I guess, but either way they were in a line. Which meant there was plenty of room to dance in the background...if I could dance in a line.

And I mostly did, except the time or two the wall jumped out and grabbed me. I looked silly, dancing on the stage. But I generally do so, so I didn't mind too much. But when my lindy was beat out by a kid doing the twist, when I didn't win the dance contest, my hopes were shattered and I refused to participate in the hula-hoop contest that followed.

I wouldn't have beat that kid either.

But that's ok, I had fun. I got to dance, on stage, in front of an audience that I'll never again see. I got to laugh at the kid using a hula-hoop larger than she. And I got to remember that my dance partner had a bad ankle and got to feel sorry for not taking it easy enough. But she didn't mind, and I got to dance.