When the upbeat, self-expressive millennials of today talk about “balance,” they are customarily referring to a balance of work and life – with quite a bit of emphasis on life’s joys.
When I, as an aging baby boomer, talk about “balance,” I am referring to not falling down when the grandchildren run to hug me around my legs.
Circle of life…
I had balance once. Not the millennial kind, but I did have dance teacher Mrs. Moffitt “twirl around the stage on my toes” kind. Yes, I was a ballerina. I could stand tall on my pink pointe shoes and tippy-toe across the stage, arms above my head, tulle tutu perfectly in place.
Problem was, I could never stand on one foot in pointe shoes, making it a little hard to do, well, anything except tippy-toe across the stage.
That, combined with the facts that I would not keep my very long and thick hair in a bun and that I liked to write things on my pink pointe shoes in blue ink, led Mrs. Moffitt to suggest I might be better suited for tap dance classes, ending my days as a ballerina.
Maybe I have the heart of a millennial. I certainly believed in self-expression.
Breakfast with Darth
Darth Vader and his Star Wars Storm Trooper sidekick are leaving my dining room-turned-playroom on Saturday morning for a road trip to Aubrey’s in Maryville.
The two 48-inch-tall figures are the guests of honor at the Hearing and Speech Foundation’s “May the Fourth Be With You Pancake Breakfast.”
The event is a fundraiser for the foundation, which supplements the cost of hearing aids for low-income families and offers therapy and training for hard-of-hearing and deaf children.
HSF, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, was founded by John Berry and the late Tutt Bradford in 1981 and does an amazing job with minimal resources. Aubrey’s and Realtor Jackie S. Mills combined resources to help fund raise with the pancake breakfast, so come chow down, have your picture made (free) with Darth Vader and enjoy the fun from 8 to 10 a.m.
Tickets are available at the door for $10 for adults and $5 for children. Darth and I will be there. He’ll be grumbling about the Force, and I’ll be serving your pancakes!
Don’t worry. I won’t be dancing through Aubrey’s in my pointe shoes.