New Heights.

Once upon a time, there was this girl. She put on a happy face and pretended everything was all right. When she was 17 she went to Six Flags in Virginia with her choir and band. She was so excited to hang out with her friends and ride the rides, that was until she stood in line for the roller coaster that went upside down. You see she had mustered up all the courage she had, she was deathly afraid of heights but she was going to do it, with her friends. Finally it was their time to get on the ride. They had waited in line for almost an hour, although it felt like much more. She sat in the seat next to her friends. The workers came to lock everyone in, except there was a problem. It wouldn't lock. They tried and tried, and finally she got off the ride. Her friends looked at her and asked permission to ride it still. "Of course" she said, cause she didn't really want to do it any
ways, you know, because it went upside down and all. It was a blessing that she didn't fit in the seat, right? As the ride took off she choked back tears. 12 years passed and she's told that story lots of times and one day when telling the story, someone listened and made a plan. Each time she told that story she holds back the tears. Except now. Now she has butterflies in her much smaller tummy. She can hardly contain her excitement. She is only hours away from the adventure of the lifetime. A trip to the largest roller coaster in the United States. And neither her weight, or her fear of heights is going to hold her back.

I can't wait to ride that roller coaster. Thank you for listening and helping to make a new memory, a new chapter.

Inspiration

I stand in my Tuesday night class. One of my happiest times of the week. I look at the faces staring back at me. What do I see? I see a multitude of faces staring back at me. But this week is just a little bit different. This week there are some different faces. Including the faces of 4 preteens. Normally I have one preteen in class. Tonight I have 4. My normal preteen attends with her mother and this week she brought her sister. My cousin is joining us and now one of my normals is bringing her granddaughter. It makes me thrilled to see families working out together. Motiviating the next generations to become healthier and happier. 

I often hear that I am the inspiration. That I inspire people to do more and work harder. The truth? Each and every person that comes to my class(es) week after week, make me want to work harder and be better. It makes me want to push myself more. Its the moments in class when someone does a jumping jack for the first time, when I can see a smile and a sparkle in their eyes- I'm not talking about the sweat dripping down their face either. When they tell me, I'm bringing a friend next time, or tag me in a post. When they post that they are excited that its class night. Last night I even got a thank you from an aqua student, for taking time to teach the class. The feedback from the person behind the counter that she has heard that people are loving my classes. When I show up and there are already people there waiting for class. It makes me smile. It makes the hours spent at the gym better.

Something else that inspires me and motivates me? Taking classes. Being a student. Being allowed to not be in the front of class and being one in the crowd. With the amount of classes I am teaching, I am making the time to be a student at least once a week, so that I can be the best when I am teaching.

So, thank you for motivating me, for inspiring me. I wouldn't be there without you.

Most Favoritest Holiday

It finally arrived. The day I look forward to year after year! No, not Christmas, not my birthday, but the Fourth of July.
Growing up I would look forward to the Fourth of July. My grandparents camp had a boat parade and even though we didn't have a boat, we would sit in our tubes and watch them go by and ride the waves. Now fast forward to adulthood and my parents getting a boat. I am a kid all over again. Our traditions have even expanded and gotten better.
July 3. Chicken and Cabassa is the meal and we watch a movie outside on a big screen on the deck. July 4th starts early. Up to eat and decorate the boat and get ready for the parade, which doesn't start until 11 ;)
Then it's hanging by the water until its dark and we have our own fireworks display put on by my most favoritest cousin, his son and my dad. We go out in the boat and just watch it light up the sky over the water.
I can't put into words what this holiday means to me and I could go on and on. I hope you all enjoyed this holiday and time with your family and friends.