November 6, 2008

Life and Pie.

I have been craving PIE for the last four days of my life, and after much hinting and, finally, pretty much flat out begging, I convinced my little family to accompany me to a little cafeteria place down the street that served pie by the slice.

(This was my first pregnancy demand. I have not yet asked for any special or late night trips to the grocery stores or restaurants to fulfill any baby-induced cravings. And I must say... It was a surprising! amount! of work! to wrangle some delicious PIE out of my boys. PIE!!)

Anywho, we went to this little cafeteria, and it was full of wonderful people who were, shall we say, of the elderly persuasion? There was an older man playing the piano, and some of the couples would get up and dance at intervals while he played. It was pretty much the most amazing thing I've ever seen in my life. These people came from an era where dancing was IT. Dancing, to their generation, is like facebook is to us now. You know... Our main source of entertainment.

We sat and ate pie and watched these lovely people dance and sway to the talented man's piano playing, and I found myself wishing so badly that our society wasn't so disconnected now-a-days... that we could go back to a time when gathering in a small dance hall was the thrill of the week, and people had to interact face-to-face if they were going to interact at all. I wished that my sons could grow up in a more personal world, and I found myself praying that they wouldn't retreat behind some digital screen at the ripe old age of 8, never to resurface again.

That's when it happened.

Ezra started groovin' a little bit in his chair. The boy was feeling it.

We encouraged him to dance if he felt like it, so he plopped another bite of his strawberry cake in his mouth and hopped right down off his chair.

What followed was what can only be described as some "fancy footwork" in the vicinity near his chair. It did not take long for the older people in the restaurant to spot this flashy little newcomer. They cheered and clapped, and one extra precious old lady (who earlier had been filling the length of the room with her dancing and shockingly high KICKING) asked my son if he would like to dance with her.

So he did.

They shimmied and "fancy footworked" their way to and fro, with a beaming mom and dad watching from their nearby table. People hooted and hollered. We clapped and whistled. My son lit the place up.

When the song was over, Ezra bowed and said "Fank you, fank you!" as the cheering continued. He thanked the woman who had been his dance partner, hopped back into his chair, and proceeded to finish his strawberry cake.

To say I was proud would be an understatement. I was beaming like a lighthouse.

In that moment, I was most reminded that the world really is what we make of it. I was reminded that the world doesn't have to feel so disconnected, distant, and aloof.

I'm pretty sure that, with one little dance, my son taught me we don't just have to roll over and accept what the world is handing us. It is what we make it.

It is what we make it!!

It starts with just a little movement... a little groovin' in one's seat... and ends with a heart that's willing to hop down off its chair and simply get its boogie on.

21 comments:

stina said...

such a good post.
made me cry.
and just cause that's easy to do doesn't mean that story isn't SUPER special because it SO is!!
:)
brightened my day

Anonymous said...

i so wish i could have been that old lady dancing away with that cute little boy.....the most adorable story ever!!!!

Angie said...

What a really great post! Your little family is great (though it would seem a little frustrating at the hesitation about PIE.)

skylana said...

pie... tell me about it... pie, poptarts, ice cream, pink donuts, zucchini bread, pancakes, waffles, muffins, cake... these have been my life lately. not cool. i wish you were here because i'm seriously the BEST baker and i could have made you the BEST pie.... its dangerous how much i bake. plus it would have been the healthiest pie someone could bake, only it wouldn't taste like it was healthy.... we do gotta live in the same place someday.... someday.

mrs boo radley said...

Cute belly, Ezra.

I totally feel the disconnect pain with the dawn of everything digital, too...glad you all were able to get out and enjoy something real.

Andrea Terry said...

That...is...SO CUTE!!! What an amazing little guy Ezra is growing up to be! Perhaps this is a sign of things to come...Ezra Clark: Dancer Extraordinaire :)

Elizabeth said...

He is such a special little boy, those eyes! I really think he is going to do something important..can't say what it is but there is something about him, even in that baby picture you posted, so cute.

No Mommy Brain said...

beautiful! is there anything these kids DON'T teach us? ;)

Court said...

SIGH. What a great story. And...a beautiful lesson.

Sadly, I spend WAY too much time on facebook. =)

Just Jiff said...

SO SWEET!!! You should go there every week and let him dance with ladies there. Take your camera!!!

THE WHITTINGTONS said...

oh, i just love him! this story made me cry. what an amazing little boy. i sure hope mine turns out as good. ;)

Annie Peterson said...

Such an adorable story!

MOMMY-MOMO said...

ohhh...i loved this! I too have been thinking about this lately! I wish society was still like that. It gets pretty lonely at times. My dream is to live in one of those super friendly neighborhoods where everyone has kids the same age as mine and they play in the streets until the street lights come on. Neighborhood cook outs and such...ahhh that would be nice :)

Hunny Bee said...

This post made me smile. A lot. Love it. Thankyou.

Anonymous said...

Your post made me tear up! Your son's "Fank you" to everyone and then to his dance partner! (swooning here) I love the "elderly persuasion" somethin' fierce... a time and generation that is passing way too quickly! Thanks for posting about your pie adventure!!! :)

Brandi in WA.

Anonymous said...

Ezra probably gave those folks more joy than we will ever know. I'm glad PIE gave you the motivation to go. Go again !

Anonymous said...

PIE & DANCING-- HOW CAN YOU BEAT THAT? I THINK THAT ALL PEOPLE IN THIS GREAT USA ARE REALLY STARTING TO THINK ABOUT GETTING BACK TO BASICS. WE WERE SPINNING OUT OF CONTROL WITH ALL OF OUR NEEDS AND GOT SHOCKED BACK IN TO A BIT OF REALITY WITH THE FINANCIAL CRISIS. SO DANCE ON EZRA,DANCE ON!! LOVE DODAD

Anonymous said...

I love it! Ezra is such a fun kid.

I actually visited the pie-and-dancing place when I visited OKC. Very nifty!

Talia said...

this post may very well be one of my favorites ever. I just related so much to what you said about life and society, and then to have such a perfectly BEAUTIFUL story to go along with it... well, it just made my heart ache, in that lovely good way that makes you want to cry happy tears!
Thank you for sharing this. Your son is amazing.

ps If you don't mind I may just have to link to this on my blog, I loved it so much.

Unknown said...

I have already had to share this story...I wholeheartedly agree. We as a society cannot forget what it means to sit face-to-face or dance freely. As much as I love technology, I long for more moments like the one you described. Thanks for sharing!

Unknown said...

Wonderful story, You and Chris are savoring the best times of your life, with your beautiful boy. Our son Justin was just like that and we enjoyed every moment with him, when he was growing up. He is 22 now. Time will go by fast.
Your writings bring joy, and make me feel closer to home, cause I am in Iraq, far away from family

Thank you. Keep it up Girl...