on a dance floor

a cowboy
danced with me
3 songs in a row, last night.
he was forthright.
he told me how smart he was,
and how wealthy he was,
he told me how good looking & strong.
he told me how talented he was,
while we 2-stepped to the music.
my response after the listening:
"wow, all that and you are humble too."
(i'm not sure he heard me over the noise.)

i danced with another cowboy
who could not speak but a squeak.
his frame and voice
were altered by some harm or disease.
he motioned "would you like to dance?"
and i accepted.
we danced
3 songs in a row, in silence
and
i felt his confidence
in who he was
as an altered man,
humble, strong, & gracious.

dancing is a sensory language.
dancing speaks more than movement,
it speaks of character.
last night i learned
that confidence is
a quality that needn't introduce itself.
last night i remembered
that confidence is...
able to carry a person forward
in a steady rhythm
to an unfamiliar tune.