How ballroom dancing reduced me to tears

To start with I would like to say there is nothing wrong with crying. Real men don't wear pink, real men aren't afraid of occasionally showing their emotions. Ok now that's out of the way

For those who don't know, a couple of years ago I competed in the first Banbury Strictly Come Dancing event. We had an intensive 6 week training programme to learn a couple of dances (The Waltz and Cha Cha Cha). When we had all finished our training, we all (10 couples) competed against each other at The Mill Arts Centre in front of a sell out audience.  I managed to finish in 3rd place and now have ballroom dancing medals sitting proudly at my gym amongst the boxing and kick boxing trophies that I have amassed over many years.

So how did this proud achievement reduce me to an uncontrollable sobbing mess whilst sat in The Cromwell Lodge Hotel. It started when a member at my Gym asked me if I could attend a local school that she worked at and teach ballroom dancing to the students.  The Local  school was Frank Wise School for the disabled.  Of course I said yes as I have a class from the school at my gym on a regular basis for fitness training. 

I managed to get Roseanne Edwards from the Banbury Guardian to lend me a tape... I mean DVD, of the Strictly Come Dancing competition I competed in so I could remember the steps. When the gym was empty was happily dancing, with my trusty old dance partner (a broomstick) around my gym in preparation.

I arrived at the school and some poor young lady who worked there was asked to help teach with me, fortunately she had danced before and was far better than I was.  Anyway we all lined up and we had a great time. everybody was dancing and there smiles everywhere. There was a massive difference in the disabilities some children didn't appear disabled whilst others were totally dependant on their teachers unable to walk, talk or even feed themselves.  But still everyone joined in.

I was asked to attend the school again to give out certificates to the pupils who I believed 'were the best dancers. The Day came and it was a Friday afternoon and the entire school was having it's usual Friday assembly. Friday assemblies at Frank wise are BRILLIANT!! One man sits with a guitar and children in small groups go to him to perform a song. One lad in a wheelchair, that he skilfully manoeuvred with a joystick on the arm of his wheelchair, dedicated a song to me and I felt a lump in my throat. One by on the school performed and I watched as the less able children of  our town came to life and it was possibly the most moving experience of my life.  I was looking around the room and seeing children who were robbed of a normal life. One lad was in a wheelchair, blind and deaf and much tinier than his age suggested. Another young girl was strapped into what I can only describe as an upright stretcher and another child watched  on with her body uncontrollably twitching.  At the end of assembly I gave out the 4 certificates.  One by one they came and collected their paper prize but to them it was like an Oscar ceremony.  The thing that struck me most was that everyone was happy, even the teachers!

I said my goodbyes and headed off back to work. It was around 4pm and my girlfriend was finishing work so I asked her if she fancied a coffee at the Cromwell Hotel before I went back to work.  So we ordered our drinks and sat down by the window and started talking about my afternoon at the school.  I started to tremble inside. Then all of a sudden I started to cry. No warning just a cascade of tears rolling down my face.  As soon as I seemed to get them under control another wave of emotion came and started them off again.  Eventually everything returned to normal and I was able to return to work

On getting back to work I changed the status on my facebook to "whilst you have the ability to make changes to your life, you have no reason to complain"  I use this experience to give myself a reality check when I complain about the hand life has dealt me.