Chapter 45
The barn was filling up rapidly. I couldn’t think of a single person from Sandpiper Shore who hadn’t turned up.
Graham and Tina, the local vicar and his wife, who were always the first on the karaoke at the local pub, had made a spectacular effort.
Loving any excuse to dress up, they had arrived as Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers.
I think we all knew what they’d be singing later once the karaoke part of the party kicked off.
Everyone was dressed appropriately, most in jeans and checked shirts.
There were lots of women in gingham dresses and there was an abundance of cowboy boots and hats.
I did wonder whether people kept these items lurking in their wardrobes, just in case an occasion like this ever came about.
I’m sure eBay and had both experienced a sales spike over the last few days too, this little corner of Cornwall being the new cowboy capital of the world.
The Bucking Bronco in the corner had a queue forming already, mainly the local youngsters all discussing how long they’d be able stay on for. Anyone over the age of forty probably would have more sense and could feel the pain in their backs just by looking at it.
People were jostling to get served at the bar, and there was another queue at the hog roast which Seamus and Tom were manning, the delicious aroma of roasted pork filling the barn.
The DJ was playing a selection of well-known country hits, which everyone seemed to be singing along to, which I was sure we’d be hearing again later when everyone was invited to put their name down for the karaoke part of the evening.
Graham, the vicar, was the compere for the evening and he rang a bell to get everyone’s attention.
‘Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like you to give a big warm welcome to The Brighthearts.’
To great applause, Becky and Sarah stepped onto the stage, wished everyone a wonderful evening, and said that we might possibly have heard their first song before.
There was a huge cheer around the room as people took their places on the makeshift dance floor in front of the stage, as they delivered the words ‘Let’s go, girls!
’ and the first line dance commenced as they belted out Shania Twain’s ‘Man, I Feel Like A Woman’.
Joy filled the room. As I looked around, I couldn’t see one person without a smile on their face.
This was what life was about. These glimmers of joy.
These moments of pure happiness. Recognising them when they burst into your life and being fully in the moment.
It wasn’t about trying to capture everything in a video but experiencing it for real.
It wasn’t about perfect Instagrammable images to show other people you were enjoying yourself.
It was about real life and being present.
We could all learn a huge lesson if we realised this.
‘Well done, Em. This was such a great idea of yours,’ I shout-whispered in her ear. ‘Even though at first we didn’t think it would be that popular, you’ve smashed it.’
She reached out and pulled Jo and me into a group hug.
‘Thanks, my lovelies! I think we smashed it. I couldn’t have done it without you guys. I couldn’t have done any of The Lonely Hearts Club events without you either. Thank you for believing in me.’
‘Always!’ Emma and I replied. ‘What a team.’
As Emma, Jo and I danced in the second row, turning ninety degrees every sixteen steps, I spied Jacqui and Bill a couple of lines behind me, Jacqui grinning widely and the concentration on Bill’s face an absolute picture.
You could see him mouthing the number of the beats like Alex had been teaching us.
But at his age, he was doing fantastically, keeping up with Jacqui who was fifteen years his junior with no effort at all.
I wouldn’t have said my dancing was perfect because it wasn’t.
I was OK until I started copying the person in front of me, because when they went wrong, then so did I.
Alex had taught us to just relax into it, count the beats with a clap halfway through, and a half step and a turn on fifteen and sixteen – and she was absolutely right.
Once you stopped concentrating so hard it became second nature and it was so enjoyable.
Most of us had dropped the counting quite quickly, but clearly Bill needed it to help him keep in time.
Line dancing was one of the most feel-good things I’d ever done. Apart from being able to keep fit, it didn’t require you to have a partner, which I was so thankful for as obviously mine had buggered off and left me – you never felt left out.
Two more dances followed that, and we took a breather over at the bar, letting the younger population of Sandpiper Shore take over the makeshift dance floor with a more modern song.
Seth’s girls were the centre of attention and I watched them from afar.
Broad grins galore and they looked so at home, fitting into the local scene like they belonged.
Sandpiper Shore did that to people, though.
It did the same for me. Lost in my thoughts, I remembered when I first met Jo in a shop and we connected right away.
When I met Emma, I felt like I’d known them both forever.
And when there was a possibility of moving into the village, I had been so sure that it was the place for me. It felt like I’d come home.
A tap on my shoulder made me turn around.
I had never been more surprised in my life.