Does anyone else watch the women's all-around gymnastics and think "I should have been there"? Every 4 years I think that. Okay, not really, but oh the memories that come up every time the Olympics come around. I was 11 when Mary Lou did the 2 perfect 10's on vault in 1984. My family didn't have TV until my late childhood so I'm happy we got to watch that historical moment. I remember it well: peach and blue floral couch(it was the 80s of course!) and screaming with delight! I was in gymnastics at that time. My dad was a self employed sign painter and had painted the signs for a new gymnastics gym in our city. We didn't have 2 dimes to rub together so they business owners traded: dad painted the signs and instead of cash to him, they let me take gymnastics. The owners were Russian. Vera, Victor, and Nathan supposedly had helped train Olga Korbut and had deflected to the US. If it was all true, how amazing. I'm betting some of it was a marketing gig! I can still hear their harsh sounding inflections and strong accents. It was about the coolest thing ever to take from "real Russians!" Anyway, I was sure they would launch me to greatness, then my parents would move to Houston for me to train with Karoli. Problem was, I wasn't that good. I had long legs, graceful moves, but I was such a chicken! The strong acrobatics terrified me. So, no reality in pursuing Olympic gold existed. I found this picture of me standing on my granparents porch after a meet.
I don't have it anymore, my mind has it, my body does not!
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