5 Pennies - Day 106

1. Participated in the Breast Cancer Walk & Activity
             I feel really odd with this penny I must admit. I had 3 really important people in my life that had to fight and thankfully survive Breast Cancer - my grandmother, my mom, and my really good friend from high school. I am lucky - I know this. Many people lose their wives, friends, sisters, mothers, aunts, etc. to this horrible disease. So I don't know if this is a good or a bad penny. I am going to try to think positive and claim it as a good penny. Anyway, I participated in the Breast Cancer Awareness Event today. I call it event because there are two options that you can do - the 5 mile walk or the 2 hour Zumba class. In years past, I have done the walk with just my mother - it has been both a bonding and humbling experience. In the past 4 years, we have expanded the bonding moment to include my son. He wears something pink every year - sometimes even a girls shirt or sweat pants - yes, I know that this will eventually traumatize him - but it is for a good cause - right? This year the event also offered the Zumba class - which I have done only a few times, but have deeply enjoyed. So this year, I did 2.5 miles of walking to my mother and my son and then an hour of the zumba class as they played in the kid zone. Even though a part of me was sad because of the content of the event - I still enjoyed the movement and activities.

2. Thanked the Zumba teacher and helped her carry in the materials for the class
              Again, I have only done this type of dance class a few times before - but there was an amazing teacher that I got to work with previously in July. Even though she is more than a tad bit older than me, wow - I struggled to keep up with her! She's amazing! So to show my thanks, I helped her carry in her materials for today's class. As we were walking in, I told her how much I enjoyed the last time I danced in her audience and how much I incorporated her movements within my own classroom with the International Dancing. Again, saying please, I'm sorry, and thank you are so vital in our society - as well as "Where's the Bathroom?"

3. Gave up my dance area to another person so that they can see the dancing instructor better
              So I must admit, in case you haven't realized, I love dancing. I trained in classical dance for over 10 years of my life and really debated about getting degree in college. I decided not to because I wanted to teach and there weren't any positions of this type available within my area. Oddly enough, the past few years some positions have been created! Anyway, I can easily pick up some basic dance moves by only watching the instructor a couple of times. However, the person beside me was having massive issues because she couldn't see what was going on in the class. So I switched her spots so that she could see the instructor better. She said thank you - not only was she a pretty lady - but also very polite. Her act of kindness with words was well worth the switch.

4. Cleaned up trash that was set aside at the food area at the event
                 Making it nice and clean for everyone else, one paper plate at a time.

5. Gave my pink dancing gloves and tote bag away to someone else
                The organizers of the event weren't expecting such a great turn out this year - I believe that it was more popular with the addition of the Zumba class. Anyway, I received a tote bag for raising enough of funds that included snacks, water, and these special gloves. I really thought to myself - "Hey, I have this stuff from the previous years. I really don't need this." So I looked around to see if anyone else wanted these items. Lo and behold a person registered but looked disappointed because it was after the organizers ran out of supplies. I simply walked over and gave her mine. She smiled and said thank you. I noticed that she was wearing a special pin that signified that she had and fought Breast Cancer herself - so it was well worth giving the items away.