This week my after-school program started back up.
It was crazy when the first little girl walked in and I realized that I had been working with her for three years. She had grown over the summer, but immediately buried her head in my side in a tight hug. Kid hugs may be the best hugs out there. She had grown over the summer and her hair was different, but she was still the same little girl I knew. She was still sassy, sweet, and constantly questioning everything.
It was that moment when I realized that I absolutely am in the right field. I have watched her grow and change, and maybe somewhere over the years, I helped just a little bit. She has also helped me grow and the best thing is I will never stop. I will never stop learning. I am so excited for this year just to see what I learn from the only population on this planet shorter than me.
It’s also interesting now, when I go to neighborhood community events for recruitment, people know me. Families walk by and give ‘Ms. Sarah’ a hug. Teachers and school faculty I’ve interacted with come by and ask how school is going. That’s the part of education that I feel like get’s overlooked, but I’m fascinated by: how the school and the neighborhood can work together to foster a welcoming and supportive community.
I am so happy I do what I do, and I know that once I REALLY start a career (we call that being a ‘real person’) I can get even more involved.
Moral of story:
Kids are great. People are great. Life is great when you look at it the right way.
This weekend has been the epitome of lazy. To be honest, I think it is my first truly lazy weekend since I started at this prestigious institute that takes over my life.
Yesterday my roommates and I woke up and laid around our living room for six hours. Doing nothing. The worst part is we spent all of that time watching the CMT top 20 countdown.
One thing I figured out is that I do not like the new Taylor Swift song. At all.
Seriously? I could write a song better than that. And for those who know me, I am not musical in anyway. Lyrical genius, rhyming ‘never’ and ‘ever.’
Not just the song itself, but the so-called whimsical video is disturbing. A group of grown men dancing in a young girls bedroom is creepy enough, but a group of grown men dancing in animal costumes with stupid smiles plastered across their faces is enough to give ANYONE nightmares.
I can see Taylor Swift’s apartment from campus, and I now will forever wonder if her walls are also covered with cableknit sweater wallpaper.
* * * *
After laying around all morning being overly critical of poorly produced music videos, I needed to move. Our new apartment is right across the street from the recenter, which takes away many of my excuses not to work out (many – not all. Don’t underestimate my ability to make excuses).
One workout options my roommates and I enjoy is a zumba class that’s offered a few times a week. It’s a chance to get out, get a cardio workout, shake our ‘thang,’ and get impossibly sweaty all at the same time.
Over the past few years we’ve tried several different zumba classes with several different instructors. Our first experience was with a professional dancer whose steps we way to hard and we all spent the majority of the class dancing in place just watching her perform these all too complicated sequences. We’ve been to classes with cute girls who bounce around to poppy music. I’ve been to one that was taught by a latino woman who add her latin flavor to the dance.
How would you feel dancing with a room of ladies that looked like this?
By now, we know how to be informed critiques of a class. Were the moves too hard? Are they too repetitive? Did we really get a good workout? The issue with most classes though are that I go, often looking like a slob (because I’m working out, not competing for Ms. America) but then go and stand in a room lined with mirrors and stare at myself take on a variety of poses for an hour. The sweat and make up starts to run down my face, my hair starts to fall flat, and my self esteem drops by the minute. The worst is when you look in that mirror and compare yourself to the other girls who look just so cute and little moving, and you know you like an whale among a sea of sirens.
Recently, we’ve started attending a zumba class with a new instructor, Carney. We walk in and a fairly large woman greets us. This was a shift from the little petite instructors that generally stand front and center in their little workout tanks and Nike leggings. I knew my roommates were exchanging glances (I’m guilty of it too) wondering how this workout class would go.
It took all of one song to realize that this workout was not going to be easy. This lady knew how to make zumba a workout. The best thing about it was she incorporated moves that were easy to catch onto, repetitive, but if done right were challenging.
She also made the class a comfortable community. She knew her body and knew how to move it. The fact that she was not a perfectly petite and toned little woman helped the other girls feel comfortable shaking in front of the mirror. I never feel like a whale because she always makes a point that dancing is for everyone, no matter what size they are.
So now, I can shake my thang with pride.
Sum up of my weekend:
Pro: I have a wonderful new workout routine, and have discovered my new love of dancing (even if I look like an idiot).
Con: I wasted 4 minutes of my life on the new Taylor Swift music video.
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