Rediscovering Oneself.

I am in the process of doing just that rediscovering who is Larry.  Looking at where I am in my life; am I where I want to be at this point in my life. I know some of you are thinking it won't be a long process.  I have had some major events in the past few months that have me wondering where I go from here.  What is next for me in my life? Am I doing what I need to be doing with my life? I feel that I am at a crossroads and not sure what direction I should take.

At the end of 2012, I thought I had it all figured out. I was signing a contract to establish a line dance class, secure in my job and starting to meet new people in the area. Paul and I were settling into our new home here in Clarksville, all was good.

Then the first person, I develop a close bond and friendship with is diagnosed with terminal cancer.  For seven months, my life had a true purpose that of being his confidant and caregiver. Now with his passing, I am lost and wondering what do I do now.

I have been told I should go back to doing what I did prior. I just don't know if I am interested in doing what I had been doing prior to taking care of my friend.  Oh sure I still love to teach, I just don't have the drive to work on establishing a class at this time.

My professional life is secure and my boss will be glad to know I am not looking to make a change.  Well not any time soon and if I do seek a change professionally, I am not sure I want to stay in the medical profession. Yet after 30+ years what else do I have...

No, I need to seek out what is going to make me feel complete again. What will give me the sense of purpose that I feel I have lost this month. I have to do things to enrich my life.  Where to start, I work from home, so I have to seek something outside these four walls that I will enjoy and put me out with other people.

I have done a great deal of soul searching the past few weeks, just working to get my mental/emotion state back to a steady keel. I am not quite there but feel I am moving in the right direction. One day at a time is all anyone can do to regain some sense of emotional stability after a loss.

Paul and I have been to Missouri to spend time with Dad and family.  It always good to start one's rediscovery with those that have known you all your life.  They are the ones that can ground you to your original principles of life.  Paul and I took a trip to reconnect for ourselves and regroup as a couple. I believe these two actions are and was necessary to help me refocus on my relationship with family and Paul. I believe starting with these two steps necessary when rediscovering oneself to bring you back to a solid starting point. So now that I have started the healing from losing my friend and regrouping here at home. I need to focus on what is going to enrich my life.

I enjoy dancing and recently discovered that there is a Clarksville Dance Club. I found that they offer dance classes and you don't have to have a partner. So I have contacted them and plan to start classes in September. This is the first step at getting me out into the public and meeting new people.

I am looking into what volunteer options are here for the city and also what other groups are in the area that may be of interest to me. I have thought about going back to church but have not determined where I will feel comfortable or if I am ready for an organized religion again.

So my rediscovery process is underway and I feel I am making progress toward rediscovering who Larry is and what is next for me in the near future.  I think to rediscover who you are; one has to focus on where you come from, what you have accomplished, and what your true interest are that give you comfort and a feeling of purpose in your life.

Keep dancin' Larry B. 

2013 Year of Dance

2013 is going to be my Year of Dance and I am so excited.  I have signed the contract with the City of Clarksville which is through August of this year then we will look at extending contract to a yearly basis. Of course, that will all depend on the success I have at establishing a great ongoing class program.

Am I worried, a little but I have faith that I am a great Instructor and that the students will spread the word that LB’s classes are fun, energetic and a great form of exercise.  I have already prepared a great variety of beginner/intermediate dances that encompass music from country to pop.  I will continue to watch the web for new dances that I feel will fit into this area. The one thing I have learned with teaching at the Clarksville Athletic Club is that Pop and Country are the two favorite genres.  I will see once the classes get going if I need to expand on that area.

I will be doing continued research to provide a great variety of great dances for the students. I will most likely pull what is popular in local clubs. I will continue to check out the most popular dances from the websites and dance classes around the country.  I want my students to be able to jump in at any club or class they happen upon.

I am now in negotiations with the City of Oak Grove, Kentucky to provide an International Line Dance program at their community center.  This would be a great location for a program due to the close proximity to Ft. Campbell Army Post. I feel we could offer a great program for the Military families in the area.  These negotiations are still ongoing at this time. I have proposed a free Introduction to Line Dance class to see what type of response we may be able to get on that side of the county.  I think we can pull students from neighboring towns like Hopkinsville, Guthrie and Pembroke by starting this program.

Yes, 2013 has been dubbed Larry B’s Year of Dance.  I encourage anyone visiting the area to drop in on a class and if you have any friends/family in the area to pass the word along that we are going to have a great year of dance in Clarksville, Tennessee.  See you on the Dance Floor

Keep Dancin’

LB

Dancing into 2013

It has been a great two months here in Clarksville, TN. We have moved into our new home and have everything completed as far as the house itself is concern.  We have also had our first visitors from Florida and we hope they had an enjoyable time at the Orchard Hills B & B.

I have been busy not only with work and setting up the house but have had a great gig at the Clarksville Athletic Club teaching Line Dancing. The last group that attended my classes has requested private classes which I will start holding on Tuesday evening at the house. We are going to utilize Paul’s half of the Man Cave for these private classes.  This should be a great experience and gives me the chance to learn new dances along with this group.

The newest group of students at the Athletic Club promise to be a lot of fun as well. I have a group of young ladies that are really into dancing.  My favorite is going to be a young lady about 10 years old that wears red high top tennis shoes with hot pink laces.  She was so much fun this week and of course, after class demonstrated her tumbling abilities as well doing back flips across the floor. Now I wonder if I can get that choreographed into a dance...

I am currently working with the Oak Grove, KY Community Center regarding establishing a class or classes with their program director. She wants to introduce more variety of classes to the local community there in Oak Grove.  I have also been in communication with the manager of the Electric Cowboy, the local night club.  I will continue to market the local clubs to establish a permanent location for my classes. 

It has been difficult to get established in a permanent location to conduct my dance class but I know that 2013 is going to be a promising year. I have students now that will spread the word and along with my continue persistence in promoting myself, LB’s Line Dance Class will become a reality.

Here is to a great 2013.

Keep Dancin’ LB

Fall Activites in Clarksville, TN

As I stated in last week’s blog entry, this is one of my favorite times of the year. There is so much offered around town and the county that you can spend every chance you get out doors enjoying the cooler weather.

Paul and I spent a great evening Thursday of this week walking along the historical downtown Clarksville at the First Thursday Artwalk. This is where the local galleries stay open and show case local artist the first Thursday of the month. It was a beautiful fall evening here and the art was really fantastic. The picture is of  hand made wood roses we found last night.

This weekend we have our choice of either attending the Oktoberfest Saturday afternoon and evening or joining “Jazz on the Lawn” at the local Beachaven Winery.

We are constantly trying new adventures so when friends and family visit we can recommend different activities to make their visit memorable.

Later this month, we plan to attend Jammin’ in the Alley. We have a great little area called Strawberry Alley with Cafes, galleries and artsy shops. Every third Friday, they hold a great evening with local bands, dancing and the cafes open their doors and place tables outside for dining.

The drought and hot temperatures of the past summer are a fading memory but with the cooler evenings we are expected to see a great increase in fall colors earlier than normal. So we will be planning a drive out to ‘Land between the Lakes’ in the next few weeks to capture the great colors.  Land between the Lakes is exactly that the land between Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley. These are two the world’s largest man-made lakes created by the TVA building dams on the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers.

Next on the agenda is to check out the local Theater productions, they are offering a great variety this year and the old Roxy Theater is just a historical landmark here in Clarksville it will be great spending time in such a grand old theater.

Well it is off to the ball park this evening, got to cheer our favorite “Dirt in the skirt” player-Christy and harass our favorite Umpire Richards.  It is church league night, we have to see how many leave their Jesus at home, and they tend to get very competitive on Friday nights.

Keep Dancin’  LB