No 41 Changing Lives through Dancing
By David Earl Woodbury
Friday, October 13, 2017
“Do what you can where you are with what you’ve got.”
– Theodore Roosevelt (1858 – 1919) 26th President of the United States
Do you ever wish things were different in your life? Sometimes I do. I wish that things were moving along faster, more prosperity, easier hours, and just more luck every day. Guess what I find out? Daily, I have to do what I can, where I am, with what I have and who I am. It’s not glamorous or easy, but the truth is that we are exactly where we are doing what we should do and using what we have. Perhaps the greatest victories in life are the little mundane things of daily life.
“Nurture your mind with great thoughts; to believe in the heroic makes heroes.”
– Benjamin Disraeli (1804 – 1881) British Prime Minister
Yes, I do thing great thoughts, much of the time. I don’t always see the immediate results that I desire, but I do believe in the heroic! My favorite hero is Siegfried, son of the Volsung twins, Sigmund and Sieglinde, children of the god of Valhalla, Wotan, and the earth goddess Erda, a mortal. Siegfried was conceived to save the gods and save the world. He knew no fear and was only protected from the front of his body by Brunhilda’s magic. She knew he would never turn his back on the enemy.
I think of how fearless he was, although naïve and reckless in his actions, he never backed down and never showed fear. In fact, the first time he did experience a moment of fear was the first moment he saw a woman, Brunhilda, and for a brief moment, he tasted fear. He overcame this by kissing her an awakening her from the spell of a deep sleep.
Yes, I do believe in heroes. When my father, Troy D. Woodbury, passed away, next to his bedside was a marble base with a brass plate on it that read, “You are my life’s hero”. He had that by him until the night the angels took him home to mom. I think that in my life, my dad was my true hero. Was he perfect? No heroes are perfect, but he was my life’s hero and I becoming more and more like him daily.
“My parents taught me that I could do anything I wanted and I have always believed it to be true. Add a clear idea of what inspires you, dedicate your energies to its pursuit and there is no knowing what you can achieve, particularly if others are inspired by your dream and offer their help. (from his book ‘Close to the Wind’. Goss successfully sailed around the world – alone.)”
– Pete Goss (1961) British Sailor and Entrepreneur
I don’t think my parent’s every told me I could not achieve my dreams. They were happy I found Arthur Murray Dance Centers and got my life on a good pathway.
“Always laugh when you can. It is cheap medicine.”
– Lord Byron (1788-1824) English Poet
My mom, J. Clair Ford Woodbury, always said to me “Keep a little song in your heart”. I have and continue to do this daily. My mom liked to laugh, and she found a lot of joy in the simple things in life. We could just sit together and tell stories and laugh until we had tears in our eyes. No wonder daddy loved her so much!
“Doctors and scientists said that breaking the four-minute mile was impossible, that one would die in the attempt. Thus, when I got up from the track after collapsing at the finish line, I figured I was dead.”
– Roger Bannister, in 1952 after breaking the four-minute mile (1929)
English former middle-distance athlete, physician and academic
I had a dancing student from England who once dated Roger Bannister. During those years while teaching Kim, I was an avid marathon runner. Kim said that when Mr. Bannister crossed the finish line and broke the record, he could not believe it. He did not die from it and he was surprised that he accomplished this goal. He truly took it in stride at the time, but soon realized that he had made history. He did what he could, where he was, with what he had. He made the impossible possible.
Thanks for reading!
David Earl Woodbury
Keep on Dancing!
davidearlwoodbury@gmail.com