Recently I heard someone say “If you want a blessing, be a blessing.” That statement resonated within me as I attended a wedding reception for Josh and Becca. Prior to their celebration, I had never met Josh; when I walked up to them, Becca gave me the biggest hug and introduced me to her new husband. He simply said, “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
To understand why his greeting meant so much to me, I need to rewind 30 years to 1996 when I was teaching preschool and Becca was in my classroom. Considering my background in theater, Becca stood out to me immediately because she was very excitable and dramatic. She was in my class for two years, and then she moved on to kindergarten.
However, our story didn’t end there; thanks to Becca’s mother, we stayed in touch over the years. We would get together for dinners and catch up on each other’s lives. Then along came social media, and although it was more convenient to stay connected, I honestly missed the personal interaction with Becca.
A few months ago, I was invited to celebrate Josh and Becca’s recent out-of-town wedding by attending a local reception. Even though I had another event in Canton that morning, I hoped that I would be back in time to see Becca and meet Josh. When I did, and he explained that he felt he already knew me by all the stories Becca told him, I realized what a blessing it was to encourage her young mind. More importantly, she remains a blessing in my life, so I wanted to share our heartfelt reunion here.
Before I started writing this article, I searched back through Facebook photos to find my favorite one of Becca and me, taken by her mother, on the last day of preschool when Becca gave me a wooden apple napkin holder. As you can see, the look on her face is priceless and one I have seen many times over the years. And yes, I still use that napkin holder!
During the reception the DJ played a wide variety of songs, but one in particular triggered my memory from my early years of teaching line dance. I recalled there were several variations to “Save a horse, ride a cowboy” so I looked online for the dance that I knew. I was pleasantly surprised to see the instruction video by Jenny; she was one of the regulars at the Dusty and I can’t count the number of times I watched her, not only on the floor, but also her videos.
When I first started teaching, I would always refer to the step sheets; unfortunately, a lot of times different venues would have their own step variations. This is one of those instances where the step sheet doesn’t match the instruction video, but Jenny always gave detailed explanations.
Thank you, Jenny, wherever you are now, for being a blessing to help me learn the “Dusty steps.” And thank you Becca, for 30 years of blessings and friendship. Best of luck in your marriage!
