“What you can do, or dream you can do, begin it.”
Week 04 1-21-22 “What you can do, or dream you can do, begin it.”
Changing Lives Through Dancing
David Woodbury – Arthur Murray Santa Monica, CA
“What you can do, or dream you can do, begin it; boldness has genius, power and magic in it.”
– Johann von Goethe (1749 – 1832)
German Poet and Dramatist
I felt very alone being a dreamer when I was young. Until I began to dance, surround myself with champions, and learn about other dreamers, I then came alive.
I did not grow up with Disney, but through Joel Rieck I learned to love all that is Disney. One man’s dream that became a worldwide reality. Somewhere around the world, there is always a Disneyland that is open.
“You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join. And the world will live as one.
– John Lennon (1940 – 1980)
Musician, Founding Member of The Beatles
These words by John Lennon are always in my heart. To have a dream, a hope, a vision…this is what life is all about.
“If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live a life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.”
– Henry David Thoreau (1817 – 1862)
American Philosopher and Writer
Now is my 45+ year of dancing with Arthur Murray Dance Centers, I have seen so many achieve their dreams. Becoming a dance champion, school owner, a judge, a traveling consultant, or perhaps all the above and even more!
Sometimes, I feel as if I have just begun to learn in my career. I know that my dreams have often been different from other’s dreams. What has kept me going for decades is knowing how lucky I am to have found my dream lifestyle as a ballroom dancer. I still feel as there is a lot left in this old Southern man and that I can still offer support and help to others.
“Happiness lies in the joy of achievement and the thrill of creative effort.”
– Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882 – 1945)
32nd President of the United States
My dreams today are still very much alive. Continuing to dance and keeping my body and franchise healthy, so important. My life with my husband, my faith, my family, “David’s Kitchen” and cooking, love of music, opera, ballet, theater, all alive and still vibrant.
My love of the world of sports, especially track and field and all the Olympic sports.
“I like living. I have sometimes been wildly, despairingly, acutely miserable, wracked with sorrow, but through it all I still know quite certainly that just to be alive is a grand thing.”
– Agatha Christie (1880 – 1976)
English crime novelist
Having survived unspoken sorrow and having lived through it, I am strong now. Challenging health issues have come and gone, and I still have a skip in my step and a song in my heart.
I made a promise during the first lockdown of covid, that I would live through all this. I just decided to live. As you read this, I don’t know what you think of it, but a promise made is a life-saving statement. I want to live more now than ever before and get through this to live out and dance through a life great in years. Daddy lived to 94 so I have some good examples in my life.
So good health, strong dreams, a zest for living, here I am and let’s “dance” forward. I am not afraid. I am full of hope.
Thanks for reading. Keep on Dancing. It will get better.
Love you all,
David Woodbury