A Story From KATIE

Yesterday I experienced one of those “Smile, You’re On Candid Camera Moments,” China Edition.

I had some free time during the afternoon while the kids were napping, so I decided to do some research for my internship in the Foster Home offices. I’d been working away for about half an hour or so, when all of a sudden one of the Foster Home staff loaded a video onto his computer, turned up the volume, and everyone else in the office stood up from their desks.

They then proceeded to tell me that it was time to do their daily office exercises, and it was clear that they expected me to join them. So, I obediently rose to my feet as my heart sank to my stomach, and I began to mentally prepare myself for the embarrassing moment that was about to ensue.

You see, I have never been an especially coordinated person, and I absolutely loathed the moments in high school gym class when we were forced to do things like taebo, palates, and hip-hop dance routines. Following along to work out videos is not exactly my strong point, either. But in that moment, I found myself wishing that I hadn’t graciously declined all those times that my roommates had pleaded with me to participate in their Denise Austin exercise nights; I certainly could have used the practice for this very occasion.

The video started out easily enough, with marching in place and simple stretching exercises. However, it quickly progressed to much more complex activities that involved arms and legs swinging different directions at alternating tempos, and I quickly found myself flailing awkwardly along and wishing that I could look as graceful and refined as everyone else. Thankfully, I was located near the back of the room so I didn’t make a fool of myself in front of the entire Foster Home staff. I did my best to follow along as best as I could and to have a good attitude, because a big part of this summer is about trying new things and being willing to be slightly uncomfortable at times.

I am pleased to announce that the torture only lasted for about 10 minutes and it wasn’t as painful as I anticipated. When it was all over, everyone just calmly sat back down at their desks and got back to work as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened. And as I sat back down, I made a mental note to avoid, at all costs, ever being in the Foster Home office at that time of day again.