J has been working full-time this week, leaving me to watch the kiddos. After a couple days of trying to both watch the boys and work from home, I gave up on working from home. In fact, one day I took them to Animal Kingdom.

Have you seen the acrobat show outside the Tuscer House in the Africa section of Animal Kingdom? It’s really impressive. A group of ridiculously strong and talented guys roll out a mat and do a floor show. The whole thing is done with clapping, dancing, whistling and shouting. It’s rhythmic and dancing and acrobatics all rolled into one. They draw a crowd every time, with people coming in from the street to stand among the tables and watch and cheer.

This time we were lucky. We happened to be at a front row table right as they were starting up.

Did I say “lucky”? I’m not sure that’s the right word. As the show got going, one of the guys pulled me up on to the “stage” to be a “volunteer”. Me and some other stiff got to join them in doing the limbo.

Now, I’m all for participating in stuff like this. But standing next to these guys, I look suspiciously like a pale formless slug quivering in a suddenly bright light, completely devoid of any sense of rhythm.

And they wanted me to limbo with them.

Of course, I could see my two boys sitting in the front row, watching their daddy with wide expectant expressions. No pressure, huh?

I did the best I could to keep up, kicking my feet wildly as much in time to the clapping as I could, and hopping when the dancers hopped. Sadly, as I went under the limbo bar, I leaned too far backwards and felt myself falling over. Fortunately, one of the dancers discretely put his hand behind my head to hold me up, and then gave a little shove to push me back up after I was under the bar.

It must have been quite a sight.

I returned to sitting by the kids. “Daddy didn’t do too well, did he?” I whispered.

“No,” my oldest said. “You need some practice.”

Yep. That’s what I need to add to my schedule: a 10am limbo practice every day.

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