Friday, June 15, 2012
A Dancer's Devotion, Part IV
Lucy flew to the studio. She breezed through her routine a few times, being extra sure to focus on her lines. After practice, Lucy took down her hair from its usual style and sat down on the studio floor.
She pulled up her phone's calendar and counted 2 days left until her next personal day and 41 until the performance. Lucy couldn't wait. She had put her new hiking boots on every day just to get a feel for them.
She'd been absentmindedly stretching whle imagining her first real hike, so Lucy was startled when she saw that it was already 7:30. She rushed home yet again and got ready for bed right away, eager to get through Friday.
When Lucy got up Friday morning, she decided to print out the map of the hiking trail she would be taking the next day. She had purposely chosen a beginner's trail. Lucy didn't want to bite off more than she could chew.
The day dragged on, as did all days before important events, and Lucy went to bed early again. The sooner she went to bed, the sooner she would be up.
Make tomorrow amazing. Please.
Saturday, June 2, 2012
A Dancer's Devotion, Part III and 1/2
Hehe. Sorry. I forgot. A lot. I'll make it up to you. :D
***********
The week was dragging by. Lucy had her almost-epiphany on Tuesday, and now it was only Thursday. Her hike was all she could think about. Not even her favorite class, Calculus, could take Lucy's mind elsewhere.
Straight after 8th period, her last class, she raced out the door to her bike. Lucy had to leave right away in order for her to swing by Catchman's Sporting and Hiking Goods before going to the studio. Entering the store, she was a bit overwhelmed by the rows and rows of shoes and rackets and ropes and t-shirts. Nevertheless, Lucy drifted towards the hiking boots determinedly.
She saw the sets of pink, purple, and heeled boots in the women's section and couldn't help but feel dissatisfied. Sure, they look cute, but could she walk for a few hours in them? A pair across the aisle caught her eye. Lucy didn't let the fact that they were in the men's section deter her. She bent down and grabbed a 6. Too big. 5. Better. 4. Eh. 3. Too tight. 4, it is. Peeking at the price tag, she was relieved that she had brought enough.
***********
Ooooh, cliffhanger. I'll have the rest of part IV up next weekend. ♥
***********
The week was dragging by. Lucy had her almost-epiphany on Tuesday, and now it was only Thursday. Her hike was all she could think about. Not even her favorite class, Calculus, could take Lucy's mind elsewhere.
Straight after 8th period, her last class, she raced out the door to her bike. Lucy had to leave right away in order for her to swing by Catchman's Sporting and Hiking Goods before going to the studio. Entering the store, she was a bit overwhelmed by the rows and rows of shoes and rackets and ropes and t-shirts. Nevertheless, Lucy drifted towards the hiking boots determinedly.
She saw the sets of pink, purple, and heeled boots in the women's section and couldn't help but feel dissatisfied. Sure, they look cute, but could she walk for a few hours in them? A pair across the aisle caught her eye. Lucy didn't let the fact that they were in the men's section deter her. She bent down and grabbed a 6. Too big. 5. Better. 4. Eh. 3. Too tight. 4, it is. Peeking at the price tag, she was relieved that she had brought enough.
***********
Ooooh, cliffhanger. I'll have the rest of part IV up next weekend. ♥
Friday, June 1, 2012
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
A Dancer's Devotion, Part III
After a relatively uneventful day at school - besides the ever-present internal nagging for change - Lucy decided to do something different. Instead of going straight to the studio, she felt like walking home.
She took a long, winding route. Just outside of her suburban area lay deep woods, where's she's never been. Lucy, aching for any change she could find, took the risk and walked down the trail into the forest.
Right away, she felt a little out of place. Her flats weren't meant for hiking and her purple NorthFace stood out amidst the green backdrop. Still, Lucy walked on, not even pausing when she heard the unfamiliar sounds of nature - birds chirping, quick footsteps on the leaves, a snapping branch here and there. She let herself get wrapped up in the sounds.
Lucy's thoughts drifted quietly. I wonder if anyone noticed I'm not at the studio. Where does this trail go? I'm kind of hungry; do I still have that granola bar in my backpack?
She sat down on a rock next to her backpack. Lucy dug past the cell phone, wallet, keys, dance schedule, until she finally hit the plastic-y wrapper of the granola bar. She pulled her water bottle out of the side pocket, too, and had a mini picnic - just her and the trees. Lucy checked her phone - 7:00.
How had she not noticed how dark it had gotten? She quickly zipped up her backpack and stood up. She walked until she could hear cars zooming by and then oriented herself. Pointing herself towards home, Lucy speedwalked the whole way, through the door, and upstairs into her room. Her heart was pounding.
She ran downstairs to tell her parents that she was late because she decided to take a "personal day." Because Lucy was never late, her parents brushed it off and asked if she was hungry, since she missed dinner.
Lucy grabbed food, went upstairs, and opened up Google on her laptop. She typed in the first thing that came to mind: local hiking trails. She scrolled through the list, jotted down her favorites, and took out her dance schedule.
The dancer counted 43 days until her next performance. She decided she could take 12 more "personal days," just as she had today. She looked up a store that sells outdoorsy supplies for some hiking boots, and then turned off her computer.
She looked at her list, the plans she made on a whim, and just smiled. Should she trust her impulse? Lucy was about fo find out.
To be continued.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
A Dancer's Devotion, Part II
Walking home from the studio on a Thursday night, Lucy was paying no attention to her surroundings. She strolled down a side street, her hair let down after practice. Turning onto the road where she lives, Lucy was struck with a thought. I've made this turn a hundred times. I walk down this street every day. I go to the studio, to school, back to the studio, and home every single day. What am I doing?
Lucy's thoughts followed her as she walked up to her bedroom. Her perfect bedroom. No clothes on the floor, no dishes, no messy piles of paper in sight. Just a neat bed, her dancing awards hung up precisely in a straight line, and a skylight.
Every night, Lucy looks up through that skylight and makes a wish on the first star she sees. Always the same wish. Make me a better dancer. Please.
That's all she really wanted. All she ever dreamed of and hoped for. But her walk home had sparked something in her. Something so small no one but her would know. Something she could pretend never occurred to her. And that's all it took. That night, she wished for something else.
That night, Lucy quietly said to the star, "I want something to change. Please."
***
Alarm clock blaring, Lucy spun out of bed. She looked the same as every morning, but the gears were already turning.
Rushing out, she almost forgot to grab her dance bag. She wasn't thinking straight. Most days, Lucy tiredly glided to the studio to make her 5:15 practice. Today, though, she walked with a purpose.
As she unlocked the door - her instructor had given her a key because she's the first one at the studio every day - Lucy had a sparkle. A glint. Something in her eyes that screamed passion.
She set down her bag, pulled her hair up by habit, and strode to the center of the room. She looked at herself in the wall-to-wall mirror. This wasn't the normal are-my-lines-perfect-are-my-toes-pointed kind of look a ballet dancer gives when checking herself in the mirror. Lucy stood perfectly straight and viewed herself head-on. Thinking about how she saw the same hair pulled back every day, the same practice outfit, the same tattered practice shoes - a sight that normally makes her proud of her dedication - made her cringe.
Lucy quickly pushed that criticism out of her mind and let her body take over. The dancer pushed through her entire routine, start to finish, 3 times before she let herself stop.
It was only 7:00. Normally, Lucy rushed out of the studio at 7:30 to get to school on time, but she had sped through her routine today. During her cool-down stretches, she felt her heart pumping - not from exertion, but from adrenaline.
Today is going to be my day. I just know it.
To be continued.
Lucy's thoughts followed her as she walked up to her bedroom. Her perfect bedroom. No clothes on the floor, no dishes, no messy piles of paper in sight. Just a neat bed, her dancing awards hung up precisely in a straight line, and a skylight.
Every night, Lucy looks up through that skylight and makes a wish on the first star she sees. Always the same wish. Make me a better dancer. Please.
That's all she really wanted. All she ever dreamed of and hoped for. But her walk home had sparked something in her. Something so small no one but her would know. Something she could pretend never occurred to her. And that's all it took. That night, she wished for something else.
That night, Lucy quietly said to the star, "I want something to change. Please."
***
Alarm clock blaring, Lucy spun out of bed. She looked the same as every morning, but the gears were already turning.
Rushing out, she almost forgot to grab her dance bag. She wasn't thinking straight. Most days, Lucy tiredly glided to the studio to make her 5:15 practice. Today, though, she walked with a purpose.
As she unlocked the door - her instructor had given her a key because she's the first one at the studio every day - Lucy had a sparkle. A glint. Something in her eyes that screamed passion.
She set down her bag, pulled her hair up by habit, and strode to the center of the room. She looked at herself in the wall-to-wall mirror. This wasn't the normal are-my-lines-perfect-are-my-toes-pointed kind of look a ballet dancer gives when checking herself in the mirror. Lucy stood perfectly straight and viewed herself head-on. Thinking about how she saw the same hair pulled back every day, the same practice outfit, the same tattered practice shoes - a sight that normally makes her proud of her dedication - made her cringe.
Lucy quickly pushed that criticism out of her mind and let her body take over. The dancer pushed through her entire routine, start to finish, 3 times before she let herself stop.
It was only 7:00. Normally, Lucy rushed out of the studio at 7:30 to get to school on time, but she had sped through her routine today. During her cool-down stretches, she felt her heart pumping - not from exertion, but from adrenaline.
Today is going to be my day. I just know it.
To be continued.
Monday, April 30, 2012
BEDA Day 30
Lastdayohmygoodness. Here it is. :) Part 2 of "A Dancer's Devotion" coming out tomorrow! ♥
Sunday, April 29, 2012
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