Thursday night I opened my home to host the Zumba Ladies monthly gathering. We decided to make it a cookie swap. I’ll get to that in a minute. We also secretly made it a going away celebration to one particular Zumba Lady, Deirdre.

I just viewed the pictures on Facebook from that night.  The fun and happiness on everyone’s face made me smile.  For once, I did not look at a picture of me and criticize my smile, my clothes or any other feature.  I really just smiled. Wow.

We ate and danced and had a great time.  Here are just a few highlights:

1. Joy: “this cookie swap is like Halloween at Christmas.  Wait.  everyone hold up your bags, why is mine lighter?”  She proceeds to tell us all to step back so she can make one more round of pickups! And we did!
2. Pictures on the stairs…I will be discreet but that many female body parts do not fit that easily into a tight space, if you get my drift.
3. I learned a new phrase that I will not display here, thanks Kim and Heather.  Chip had to explain it to me.
4. My poor and blessed husband as the dedicated photo taker and the girls yelling to him, say Pizza Tony when it was time to smile and press harder Chip, when the flash did not go off. (really.)
5. Meg performing sign language to Sue’s announcements. Priceless.

My house was alive, more alive with friends than it had been in a long time.  I always feel that way with family, how blessed was I to have that with my friends?

Now we are ‘losing’ one of our Zumba Ladies to the great state of Idaho, potato capital of the USA.  Deirdre will be leaving us in early January.  The gang decided to send her off, zumba style. Here’s what we did:

• Judy took all the pictures that Sue had thankfully tortured us taking and made it into a slide show to Zumba music.  It was unbelievable.  We all sat in my basement and remembered when and where each and every picture was taken.  What a trip.
• Jackie researched all sorts of fun facts on Idaho.   Sue, Jackie and I read them aloud to the gang…too funny.
• Then Jewel, Heather and Jackie read, not sang, the words to What Makes You Beautiful, by One Direction. Once she said, ‘hey wait, that’s a song”, we all broke into song and dance.  It was great.
• Finally, we gave her the picture that we secretly had taken at the gym. One Saturday we all got cleaned up and dressed and met a photographer at the gym and had our picture taken.  We signed it and framed it and presented it to Deirdre that night.

Tears slowly replaced the laughs and singing, but just for a moment. We picked it back up as true Zumba Ladies do…we hugged each other and I am sure that we all realized what we have.  No amount of distance will change that and mission accomplished: Deidre knows it now too.

Merry Christmas ladies and thank you for the gifts you give me. I don’t need anything more, well, maybe a clementine.