From Function to Fitness :: Getting Your Groove Back

I am not an aerialist.
I am not a dancer.
I am not a producer.
But if I have come to realize anything about my life it's that I am most definitely a risk taker.

I am not quite sure where it started and I am not quite sure where it will take me. I have been this way ever since I can remember and I seem to get myself in some of the most precarious of situations. Admittedly, sometimes it gets to be a bit much and many times I do feel in over my head. But I know the value of learning how to swim. Besides I would like to think that my actions will eventually encourage and inpsire my daughters as they face different paths in their own personal roads ahead.

If you had told me at the beginning of last year that I would not only be pulling together my own show but also dancing in it and hanging from a lyra, well, I would have told you that you were crazy. I have always wanted to see something different produced on the Nashville stage but never had one ounce of desire (aka guts) to make that happen all by myself. However, when my friend Laura shared a similar vision of producing a such a show, to create a unique most-memorable experience, I knew that I could never say 'no'. Laura, being an amazing woman and musician- who by no doubt can handle anything that crosses her path, was an easy fit for me and the opportunity to work with her was too precious to pass up.

In peeling off the layers and diving in with Laura to create this show, naturally many things began to unfold. I had decided early on that I did not want to perform a hula hoop number and opted for something different, new and out of the ordinary... at least for me. So I opted for not only more numbers but ones that would bring movement to my body but through a different light.

As I have steadily trained these past few months, it has become quite clear, especially in being surrounded by a cast of twenty-somethings, that my almost 38 year old body does not move like theirs... by any means. Yes, I find myself to be the "old" one in the group. And while age has never been a forethought in my mind before, this has been one of the most daunting realizations and I see now why my mother tried to hang on to "29"" for so many years. It takes me a million times longer to learn things that they can just do in one or two tries. Their bodies bend and meld while mine creaks and cracks. Yes, my range of motion is somewhat limited and by no means is grace my middle name.

While I have put months into my practice, the perfectionist in me feels as if I could use many more. At night I fall asleep running through my numbers in my head. I close my eyes and automatically feel the sway of the lyra. I have to open my eyes so I don't get too dizzy. And of course I sit there and wonder, where is MTV's "Make me an Aerialist for 38 year olds" when you need it most?

I am more excited about this show than I have ever been about any show that I have watched or even participated in. But I am also more terrified of the stage than I have ever been before. The only phsyical feeling I can aquate it to is the time I was at the top of my first slope about to jump off. It was absolutely terrifying, but I could not make my friends walk down the slope via the 2 mile cross country path back to the lodge like I had made them done the day before... yes, I now had to jump.

As I am getting ready to jump I hope you will be there with me in support. And I hope that my being there encourages you to try something new, maybe to even try something that terrifies you. I often worry that we spend our lives away defining ourselves by who we are not- or what we cannot do. But I am a risk taker. Now tell me, what are you?

Posted by hooprama at 01:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I thought that at the very least there would be some time for reflection at the end of 2009 or maybe even at the beginning of 2010.  Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately for some) there was not this time around.  I was able to come up for breath for about 2 days right on the 25th.  And then I headed right back under on the 27th.  Yes, 2010 is in full gear and I am not sure that I have my seat belt on yet!

I realized the week before New Year's, that the first half of my year is already planned out in full to the point of no return.  That's a good thing, but an admitted challenge for me in the juggling and sanity process.  I feel as if I am walking around with a million "to do" lists in my head, trying desperately not to forget anything.  Regardless, I am extremely thankful that my to do list is weighed down with things that are very important to me.  They are so important that not one is worth moving for even the sake of a small much desired breath. 

I kicked off the New Year with the approval of our non-profit status from the State of TN for Hooping for Hope.  Making this adventure a bonafide non-profit has been a dream of mine for the past 2 years and I am thankful that we can finally begin to fund raise and search for grants.  I feel so fortunate to have two dear friends walking me through the process the past couple of months.  In order to celebrate the recent accomplishments, I created a new website that you can check out here.

Next in line is the prompt kick-off of the training for Hooping the Half Marathon.  With over 35 girls fully registered and a team of fabulous trainers, I think we are about ready to roll.  The weather is not forgiving, but the excitement is infectious and I know these gals will be rockstars!  We will spend the next 3 1/2 months training and perfecting our hoop walking skills in preparation for the big day, April 24th.  {Of course you can follow updates on our progress on the above mentioned blog.}

I will continue to hold by breath as I diligently train and prepare for one of my largest personal adventures... co-producing a show at the Belcourt Theatre on February 12th.  This particular show has been a vision of mine for some time and I am again incredibly thankful to be sharing the spotlight with an amazingly and inspiring woman who will co-produce with me.  This show is like none other that I have seen in town and to top it off I have set some pretty high challenges for myself personally.  I am admittedly neither producer, dancer or aerialist, and yet I have decided to tackle all three.  I guess that's what happens when you see the years start to go by quicker and the drive to accomplish more steadily increases.  Oh, and yes, we have created a website for this adventure too... the Blind Tiger Dames.

In proper fashion, I will then hold my breath a bit longer as we move to the next adventure... a vintage clothing swap/benefit for my friend Amy Patterson, "Giving Threads for Life" on March 21st.  Amy has been inspiring this past year in all that she has faced and as a fixture to the vintage community, attaching my vintage swap as a benefit to, well, directly benefit her was a no-brainer.  There will be more details to follow- and yes, of course, this event has it's own website too... ecochicswap.com.

One month post swap, you will find me then leading a team of women in the 2010 country music marathon in a sea of pink hoops.  Yes, almost 4 months of training will be paying off in 4 short hours of hoop walking.  I wait all year for this event to come around again and look forward to the women who decide to partake in this crazy little adventure. 

Upon completion of the half-marathon, on month five, I will hold my breath a little more while I venture out on a mini-vacation with my oldest daughter, Fiona.  Taking one day off from work gives me anxiety attacks.  Don't get me wrong, I love vacation just as much as the next person, but the idea of all the work that happens while I am gone... that waits for me to return... that I have to then catch up on... well, that keeps me pretty well buckled in!

In closing of my reflection of the next 5 months to come, it is obvious to me the common thread that binds them all.   The people closest to me are the ones who will make all this a possibility for me to achieve in the coming months ahead.  Hailey & Kelly will guide me through Hooping for Hope.  Laura will hold my hand in my first production while the cast cheers me on.  Stephanie & Carrie will be instrumental in the smooth flow of Amy's benefit.  My husband David, Fiona, the team leaders and the entire team will make Hooping for Hope a reality and last but not least, the little friend inside of me will let me go off for a few days to go play and have fun.  I wish you all a productive and prosperous New Year and hope that you will find your schedule filled with helping those around you because I promise, your friend could not do half of it without the support and love of someone like you.

Posted by hooprama at 12:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)