Aerobics Class
In the beginning,
There were floor-to-ceiling mirrors
and a suspended wooden floor covered with thick blue mats.
The music was uplifting.
The songs “Whip It” and “Maniac,”
would bring you to palpable heights.
All right, class,
Heads Up,
Shoulders Back and Down,
Chest Out,
Stomach In,
Pelvic Tilt,
Knees Bent,
Inhale, Exhale,
Again, Inhale, Exhale.
We are stunning in our spandex
And multi-hued leotards and tights,
with matching leg warmers and bare feet.
I sidestep right and left with rising resolve,
sweat pouring from my brow,
clouding my contacts and stinging my eyes.
My pulse races as I wait for that first crescendo, to whistle and wail, as I reach a familiar threshold and cross over into the Zone.
Side-to-side, jumping jacks, grapevine, lunges, pivots, and kicks forward, back, left, and right.
Knowing that inside the music, there is no pain.
Cued to go faster
until the pounding in my brain,
bubbles to an ecstatic boil
penetrating old barriers
The last notes reverberate
and I glide across the floor,
salty but satisfied.
Manage to gulp down
water and air,
Then
surrender ever so slowly
Back to reason.
1/26/26
Corney Press 