Dancing to the beat in celebration of Jim's birth

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In remembrance of my love, Jim Macartney, born July 12, 1950, flew to his after life, August 1, 2020.

There are big anniversaries coming up, related to my Jim and related to my emergence into a new way of being in Life as a lone person.

Saturday, July 12, is the anniversary of Jim’s birth: he would’ve been 75 years old. And while I have at least a dozen things I could do, I have chosen to dance to special music times 2: The story:

Jim was not a dancer— that’s what he said in comparison to me, well known as a dancer. His rhythm was completely his own, and even when we took partner-dance lessons, I had to count aloud most of the time. Which was fine because he earnestly wanted to dance: with me and he also wanted to dance!

So, to music of any kind, he would often drift off in his own world, dancing to an unseen rhythm known only to himself. I let him go to this because he enjoyed himself: why restrict him in anyway?

And then there was African Marimba music, which for interesting reasons, really took off in the late 70s in the Pacific Northwest. Jim loved Marimba. And I’ve always loved African rhythms; my favorite music to dance to is drumming and marimba, followed closely by soul music.

We would attend Zimbabwean Marimba concerts wherever they were held. There is where I witnessed Jim in his element that was completely his own: He said of Marimba music: “Marimba dances me.” I loved that!

African Marimba dances me too: Some of my moves are learned, most are made up by the Rhythm Spirit I was born with. My mom claimed I was born dancing: wiggling my ears and kicking my feet. (I have yet to wiggle my ears in my life again tho) . Percussive beats are what I live for. And whether drumming in circle, or dancing to Marimba, my Jim participated in a way that I strongly know kept his wildly beating, arrhythmic heart as healthy as possible.

So, to celebrate the day of his birth on July 12 , I will dance at two events: a local marimba band plays at the Bayview farmers market near Langley, Whidbey Island, 11:00M- 1:00 PM. And from 6:00-8:00, I will dance at Deception Pass park, also on Whidbey, first at a Ghanan dance lesson, and then to a wonderful African drum group.

This feels joyful to me: a way to be in life and celebrate the life of a man willing to dance to his own drum—and heart beat.