Being Less Board
Nov. 8th, 2005 09:10 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rickpsWARNING: This is a hopelessly boring square dance related post. You should test your page down button now.
Some five and a half years ago, I foolishly mumbled something about wanting to give back to the square dancecult club that I'd joined. Little did I know that the all-seeing, all-knowing powers that ran the club would pull me into their devilish vortex of not-so-secret meetings, vaguely stated bylaws, and surprisingly, a lack of a secret handshake.
"I hear you'd like to be on the Foggy City Board", quipped Arthur, then President of Foggy City Dancers. I should have run (OK, should have jumped in my car and raced away as I never run anywhere). But no, his welcoming tone and Cheshire Cat smile transfixed me. In moments, I heard myself agreeing to become a Board member. And, to quote Sherlock Holmes, the game was afoot.
Fast forward to this past Saturday as I said my farewells to my fellow Board members after being on the Board for five years, three of which were as President and one as VP. Did I feel separation anxiety? In a word, yes. It was time to let go. But like a horse long hitched to a wagon, I realized that I'd become accustomed to the crack of the whip (no, don't go there) and having the bit in my mouth (don't go there either).
Was it a good five years? Yeah, for the most part it was. We put on a lot of successful dances, graduated a bunch of newcult members dancers, held a very rewarding 20th Anniversary "fly-in" dancing weekend, and kept the club membership relatively stable despite the departure of many of the club's old guard. We tried some new ideas and a few worked. We kept the club financially strong. We laughed a lot. And we cried a lot together too when members of our community passed before their time.
Frustrating and depressing times? Jeez, where do I begin? Working hard to find new class members only to see them disappear after taking the classes. The chronic need to find new, dedicated Board members (I was actually pretty fortunate in this regard). The tightrope balancing act of managing a volunteer organization. And the seemingly endless series of large and small tasks that truncated time on evenings and weekends. Endless, ever endless.
Now it's over, the shackles have been removed. I can actually go to a square dance and just...dance. Wow, what a concept! Whatever will I do with all these free Tuesday nights?
Some five and a half years ago, I foolishly mumbled something about wanting to give back to the square dance
"I hear you'd like to be on the Foggy City Board", quipped Arthur, then President of Foggy City Dancers. I should have run (OK, should have jumped in my car and raced away as I never run anywhere). But no, his welcoming tone and Cheshire Cat smile transfixed me. In moments, I heard myself agreeing to become a Board member. And, to quote Sherlock Holmes, the game was afoot.
Fast forward to this past Saturday as I said my farewells to my fellow Board members after being on the Board for five years, three of which were as President and one as VP. Did I feel separation anxiety? In a word, yes. It was time to let go. But like a horse long hitched to a wagon, I realized that I'd become accustomed to the crack of the whip (no, don't go there) and having the bit in my mouth (don't go there either).
Was it a good five years? Yeah, for the most part it was. We put on a lot of successful dances, graduated a bunch of new
Frustrating and depressing times? Jeez, where do I begin? Working hard to find new class members only to see them disappear after taking the classes. The chronic need to find new, dedicated Board members (I was actually pretty fortunate in this regard). The tightrope balancing act of managing a volunteer organization. And the seemingly endless series of large and small tasks that truncated time on evenings and weekends. Endless, ever endless.
Now it's over, the shackles have been removed. I can actually go to a square dance and just...dance. Wow, what a concept! Whatever will I do with all these free Tuesday nights?
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2005-11-08 07:01 pm (UTC)To reiterate something I said in my post...
"OK, should have jumped in my car and raced away as I never run anywhere"
And to quote Groucho Marks - 'I would never belong to an organization that would have me as a member'. Damn, why didn't I remember THAT quote five and a half years ago??