Back in the Saddle: Pioneer Day

Ephesians 6:18 - "Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;"

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I made a bunch of plans for last Friday. Oh, were they magnificent. They were beautiful! They were full of grace! They were all scheduled on the same day as a Utah-only holiday with which I'm only loosely familiar!

... wait, what was that last one?

Much to my consternation, I ended up having to dramatically shift gears and make all new plans thanks to Pioneer Day sneaking up on me. Thankfully, my friend was down for the change, and so off to the local Pioneer Day celebration we went, with little clue as to what we should expect.

Despite some initial misgivings on my part, I had a lot of fun. We played some old-timey games, we got elbows-deep in a scavenger hunt, I got to catch up with an old and most respected friend, and we even watched some natives perform a ceremonial dance.

I admit a certain lack of knowledge pertaining to the dance they performed, but it involved a lot of hula hoop-type rings.

It was those dancers that really got me thinking. First of all, I immediately recognized how manly those men had to be, primarily because they were brave enough to wear sequined skirts in public, but also because they were still able to pick up the ladies afterward. However, my thoughts eventually turned to my own dancing aspirations.

My self-imposed Capoeira (Brazilian dance-fighting) training has suffered tremendously with the erratic hours of my employment and the physical strain I'm often placed under. My independent studies and frenetic writing schedule don't offer much in regards to free time, either. Often, when I finally hit the sack, I drop off to sleep mere seconds later, so spent I am at the end of each and every day.

Regardless, those dancers gave me pause. They'd obviously put a lot of time and energy into doing something they loved, and it showed through their excellent execution. I decided, then and there, to begin making time to practice my moves once more.

How about you? Do you have any talents or skills you feel inspired to begin practicing once more? Be sure to leave your comments below!

Of course, who doesn't want this vanity shot of me holding some sort of metal tool? Again, I confess some ignorance about the its nature, but it looked to me as though it would have been useful for mischievous grandparents confined to armchairs. They could have 'stolen' their grandkids' noses from across the room. "GOT YER CONK!" they'd shout. Good times, good times.