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12 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | NOVEMBER 2024 I met Harriette Stuckey, founder of Heart and Soul Line Dance in 2007 and attended her line dance classes. She gave me the opportunity to conduct classes as a substitute instructor, and in July 2011 we started the Heart and Soul Line Dance class at Four Seasons. I received my instructor certification in 2012 and continue recertification every two years. After my retirement in 2014, I began line dance classes for the Beaumont-Cherry Valley Recreation & Parks District where I participate in many of their community activities/events. And in 2021, I began line dance classes at the Altis Senior Community. I have made many line dance friends throughout the United States and beyond. Music and dance are euphoric for me. I hope that it is evident in each class. I want to make it infectious. Dancing gets us moving, we can put our worries aside for a while, we get to socialize, and (mainly) we have fun. We do not strive for (nor do I expect) perfection, only progress. I appreciate and thank every dancer who has and continues to support me after all these years. I cannot say how much longer I will do it. My role is more of a caregiver these days as the "love of my life" experiences health challenges. Our dance has slowed but music and dance are still part of our life. Most of our dancing is now done at home, family gatherings, and occasionally when I can coax him to come out to an event with me. Music and dance perks him up, if only for that moment, and I will dance with him until our music ends. Dancing with the love of my life La Vida es un Baile… Life is a Dance n By Priscilla Robles Born to Puerto Rican parents, in Spanish Harlem (Upper Manhattan, New York City), music and dance were a constant. My parents were both dancers, so Mom was my first teacher and Dad my first dance partner. Music could be heard throughout our neighborhood. Summers were the best — music played and the men in the neighborhood made the music come alive as they played their instruments (congas, timbales, cowbell, the güíro, and maracas). You would find me and friends dancing in the streets like we were showgirls. Onlookers, even from open windows, would throw loose change for our performance. In 1965, my uncles who lived in California, convinced my mother to join them. I wanted to stay with a friend so I could finish my senior year before coming west. That didn't happen. Mom could not afford the airfare for six people, so we traveled by "good old" Greyhound. The trip was not as traumatic as I thought; four other families were also making the trip. We had that bus packed and rocking! We settled in the Culver City/Palms area; that was an experience. Neighbors couldn't figure out what we were. That senior year was a blur. I did not get the opportunity to make many friends. I was 16 years old; my dress, my speech, and my attitude were so different from those of my new classmates. I didn't fit in. I just wanted it over. After graduating I attended college, found my first "real" job, and began life on my own. Music and dance were still a constant for me. Wednesday through Sunday (nights), you could find me Salsa dancing or listening to jazz and/or R&B. In 1969, I found the "love of my life." I spotted this tall, dark, handsome man and I couldn't take my eyes off him. So I approached him, introduced myself, invited him to join me, then walked away. He finally came over and asked me to dance. We danced the entire evening and never stopped. We married and moved to Northern California. He owned and operated a janitorial business, while I worked for Xerox and IBM. Together, we raised two sons and always found time to dance.

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