He
Could Have Danced All Night
Jackie
K. Cooper
At
my son's wedding a few week's ago, my granddaughter Genna served
as flower girl, and what a beautiful flower girl she was! She
had a new dress that was just the right combination of little
girl and sophisticated child; plus she had Shirley Temple curls
put in her beautiful red hair. Was she stunning? You bet!
She
took her flower girl duties very seriously, too. When she came
down the aisle, she came at a slow pace, and she strewed the petals
equally to the right and to the left. And the entire time she
kept a splendid smile on her face.
Before
the wedding, Genna, who is five, was talking to her younger brother
Walker, who is three, about her duties and how important they
were to the overall success of the nuptials. She went on and on
about it and then added, "You know Walker, you really don't
have anything to do in the wedding."
Now
she didn't mean to be mean to him. Rather she was just making
a statement of fact. But her Nana overheard the conversation and
immediately went in to tell Walker he was going to escort her
down the aisle. Which meant I stumbled along behind the two of
them.
Being
Nana's escort also meant Walker had to have, make that HAD TO
HAVE, a tuxedo - a Tommy Hilfiger tuxedo. At first I said no way,
and then I gave in. And in truth he did look great in it. Walker
is the kind of kid who looks great in everything he wears. Clothes
just hang on him the right way. I could spend a trillion dollars
on clothes and they would just be clothes. But Walker can put
on anything from jeans to sweat pants and he looks like a fashion
plate.
He
looked great at the wedding, but it was at the reception he really
came alive. His tuxedo shoes were too tight so he took them off,
and then he hit the dance floor. He was a whirling dervish of
rhythm and showed some moves we had not seen before. I think Nellie,
his nanny, has been letting him watch "Soul Train" because
he had some moves that didn't come from the cotillion.
He
was one of the first on the dance floor and he was one of the
last to leave. He virtually could have danced all night. Oh, if
I only had his energy.
Watching
Genna and Walker grow up is going to be such a treat. Each day
is a new adventure, and each time I see them they have something
new to report. I hope they get to have all the enjoyment the world
has to offer and in the words of Lee Ann Womack, "I hope
they dance!"
***
JACKIE
K. COOPER was born in South Carolina and now lives in Georgia.
He is familiar to people living in the middle Georgia area as
the "entertainment man" since his entertainment reviews
run in newspapers and are shown on television there. His short
stories have been used as commentary on Georgia Public Radio.
He also keeps active appearing as an after dinner speaker for
various events.
Cooper
has lived an exceptionally interesting life and portions of it
were contained in his first book Journey of a Gentle Southern
Man. The journey continued in Chances and Choices.
Jackie's
first two books, Journey of a Gentle Southern Man
and Chances and Choices, were reprinted and published
by Mercer University Press in July 2004. His third book Halfway
Home was published by Mercer University Press in October
2004.
Cooper
is currently at work on his fourth book, The Book Binder,
which will be published in the fall of 2006.
Visit
his website, or email
Jackie.
©
Jackie K. Cooper