Do-Si-Do with your partner...

This week my friend, Mackenzie (she is 11), and I took our first Western Square Dance class.

We looked forward to it for days. Mackenzie is always up for adventure (remember she is 11), and my grown up married friends just go home from work and go to bed early. (Being a single gal in northern Indiana is sometimes a stretch!)

The dance was held in a local elementary school in the cafeteria. The tables were pushed aside and snacks were set up in the corner. That immediately caught Mackenzie's eye as she filled a cup with M&M's. I decided to pass, I mean I was there for the workout!

Everyone was friendly. They all belong to the Magic Squares, a Western Square dancing club. They had nametags and were very oficial. The caller used a small microphone and played small 45's on a turntable. I was amazed at that. Most of the songs he sung along with.

We danced for two hours never lacking a partner as those Magic Square folks wanted us to learn!! We caught on pretty fast. Mackenzie is young and smart. I have to excuse to catch on fast, except I know the old hoe down!!

During a break I asked Mackenzie what she thought. "Well," she said, "for one thing, I thought we would be outside under a tent."

"That would be fun," I said. "Anything else?"

"Yea, they are all older than us!"

I looked around, she wasn't quite correct in that...how old does she think I am. But not wanting to burst her bubble, I simply agreed.

As for next week? If we show up agian, we have to bring $50. Of course, there are those M&M's.......


Lou Ann Homan-Saylor lives in Angola, Indiana which is nestled in the hills of Northern Indiana. When she is home at the White Picket Gardens you can find her gardening or writing late into the night under the light of her frayed scarlet lamp. She is a storyteller, a teacher, a writer, an actress and a collector of front porch stories.