I was standing outside getting ready to get lunch last week and a phone call came in with an area code from Baton Rouge, my hometown. A bit perplexed that I didn't know the number, I answered cautiously and heard a voice that I will never forget. For 16 years of my life, 4 days a week I heard the same voice inspiring and demanding me to be my best.
On the other line was the founder of my dance studio, Jerisse Grantham. Her love for dance, especially tap was infectious. Her studio was our second home; we were a family of people driven by a calling to move our feet and always "live, love, laugh". The last time I saw her was 11 years ago when she was preparing to have her first child and wouldn't leave the studio. I remember helping her lock up and telling her to call me when she got home. Ironically that's the first thing she mentioned to me on our call.
You never know how much someone impacts your life or vice versa by simple interactions. That studio gave me an opportunity to express my love of the arts and forever changed me as a person. She reinforced what my parents taught me in terms of discipline, hard work, commitment, and living every day with no regrets. It was the perfect call to receive after questioning the last few months what's next. Her last statement to me was "Stop by the studio when you're in Baton Rouge, and whatever is next will be better than the last."
dyism:
It's worth remembering the lessons of our past, to make brighter futures.
