The Misfit Swans

The Misfit Swans



Including the She Dances With Dogs story



Some people dance to the beat of a different drummer. And some people dance to the beat of many different music drummers like a rousing Al Hurt trumpet, a steel guitar, a baby grand piano or a beau jangles banjo. It's their very own music they love breathing deep within their hearts.
For generations since the beginning of time, they've come to be known as the Misfits for they don't fit in with the standard working crew. They dare to dance free and away from all those who all just keep dancing over and over again to the same drummer but not necessarily their own.
You can trace the Misfit different drummers from childhood. They're the ones who wanted mother to read the story of the Ugly Duckling that turned into the most beautiful swan over and over again. It was their favorite childhood story. Every time they would read or hear it, a tiny tear would slide down their cheeks. For they knew deep down inside they were that Ugly Duckling who just doesn't fit the mold. They lived the agony every day dying to break free to transform into God's beautiful swans. They just didn't fit into the shrinking corporate duck suit. They had felt so ugly for so long like so many of us.
There are the millions of people who are the Misfits. They yearn to dance to their own drummers too. Invisible to the naked eye, their real different drummers lie buried in the quiet desolation of the public and corporate wastelands. They waited quietly to dance their own drummer's dances, hearts breaking for their own impassioned, musical moments in the sun
All alone they struggle to ignore the calling of their own different drummers for the sake of security and protocol. They fooled themselves for Mother, social security and Master Card. Year in and year out flew the same old, safe banner and danced the same dance of society's American apple pie. But the sound of their beating different drummer's music would never give up, It so loyally would just not go away. It keeps calling to them to bravely rise up and dance to their own beautiful different drummer music. It tortures them all throughout the day - as soon as they climb out of bed in the sunrise of another lost morning...sitting stuck in rush hour traffic.....in the fading colors of yet another brilliant, promising sunset disappearing again into the dark shadows of night. But the music of the different drummer never dies. It's the bravery and passion that compels the people trapped in the same drummers to rise above as the blessed Misfits who grew into swans.
Being captive in the corporate cuckoo's cube kept feeling so wrong for them, for us, chained away from the beautiful Swan that could not yet emerge. And so, their spirit died a little more in each handcuffed, desolate 8-hour day. Is this an imprisoned life sentence? Not for all.
Finally, the determined to be free brave ones could not, would not block their music's melody of their different drummer in their heart any longer. It tortures the Misfits out of the prisons of their fear and inertia.
They make the break from protocol and safety to follow the beat of their different drummers. They throw society's death caution to the wind and follow their passions and emerge in all their glory as the Misfit Swans. They start new companies, they make new inventions, write new songs, cure diseases, become artists, start organizations to help their fellow man, lead governments, and run corporations. They've broken free to grow into the beautiful swans in all their magnificent glory with the courage to fly over the cuckoo's cube of corporate America and all of society's constraints work world.
They've emerged from the once ugly duckling into the Misfit Swans we've come to know as the "Fee Ones, the Great Ones who served and changed the world their way. Why? Because they dared listen to and follow their different drummers and change our worlds forever." They started with nothing but their dreams, their God given talents to serve and their passion and blind belief to following their own different drummer to final success. Finally, they are the Misfit Ugly Ducklings no longer. They are our world changing hero Misfit swans. Here are a few you most likely know: Walt Disney, James Dyson, Estee Lauder, Mark Cuban, Richard Branson, Mary Kay Ash, as well as thousands of people you've not heard of...yet.
Steve Jobs' Apple, Henry Ford, Cornel Sanders, Herb Kelleher, Martha Stewart and thousands even hundreds of thousands more.
Here are some of their stories of courage, passion and final freedom to dance to the beat of their own different drummers....from the ugly duckling Misfits to the Swans who dared to fly over the Cuckoo's Cube ....how they loved and lived their own music that helped to positively change our world forever more.
The misfit ducklings turned into their meant to be beautiful swans are truly free. Hopefully you will follow your own different drummer music that turns that ugly Misfit duckling into the truly free, magnificent swan that by God you were intended to be and fly free.


She Dances with Dogs
Ever since she was a little girl with long black braids and big smiling brown eyes, Linda Farr loved to dance. From her first steps bouncing and swaying to the rhythm of her parents' music CDs to the beautifully dance recitals she choreographed, dancing ignited her life fire.
It made her feel and come alive into her own. When the magic of the music and dance swept through her arms, her legs and body, Linda's soul came alive. With each new movement, she felt an electric new freedom. She stepped and swayed. She moved with grace. Dancing was her passion, her true love, her essence and her freedom.
"I knew deep down that I would always be a dancer in my heart," said Linda. "Whenever I step out onto the dance floor, the passion of free movement and excitement rushes through me. It's when I am truly alive. I could always see myself starring in my own dance shows. No one could ever take my dancing dreams away. Your dreams are who you really are," said Linda.
Then, time kept rolling on and the inevitable happened. Her childhood dancing recitals drew to a
close. Linda refused to give up her dancing. So, she practiced and practiced until she made the baton-twirling majorette in the high school band. She could dance on at least a little more.
Before she knew it, she was a little girl no more and leaving home as a young woman all alone in college. She had to leave the little girl's formal dance in the dust of her past. Her dance was not completely gone. She still had the informal and unconventional dance of college discos and parties to feed her soul.
But when she graduated from college, her dancing dreams faded into the scary social landscape of supporting and maintaining everyday life. She thought for the moment, she'd pack her passion away into the hidden corners of her heart, in lieu of job searches, money matters, cars, errands and such. And, there the dancing dreams laid waiting for their day of freedom. The "just for the moments" turned into day after day and year after year. Yet, her dancing dreams never stopped whispering their passion from deep inside her heart.
For 23 years of Monday through Friday's 8 to 5s and 46,000 hours, Linda reported to her security post tucked away in a little real estate sales office at the Des Moines municipal airport. Her world had shrunk into a one-room confine of desks, telephones and corporate papers.
"I settled into the daily routine of meeting and greeting travelers and passersby who might be interested in starting their new home search. Before I knew it, my life's passion and dreams got shelved and had gradually narrowed to filling the home sales pipeline," said Linda.
         "And for another 23 years, "I would have stayed tucked away in that one little security blanket room at the airport," she said.
Then, misfortune struck. Just as nature's sunny days must make way for the thunderstorms, her company's once stable business blew up and down in the winds of new market slowdown and change.
Rumors of layoffs swept through the ranks. Walking paranoids filled the company halls. Her friends warned her by saying, "Linda, you're way up there in pay. You're going to be next."
Sure enough, the doomsday plague finally made its way into her corporate cubby. The black hooded male Spector of lost jobs doom tapped her on the shoulder too and ripped her out of the only 23-year career world she'd ever known. It was her identity, security blanket and her only life. But he would be her white knight in disguise.
"I was really scared. My whole world as I knew it had been yanked away. I thought, what else am I going to do? Where am I going to go? What ever would become of me?" she asked.

With belief in herself, her faith and lots of guts, Linda turned the nightmare into her life dream. Linda believed in the Angels of Mercy to make her stronger and courageous enough to follow the love music of her own drummer.
One day at dog trainer friend's house, she saw a videotape of dog-master freestyler dancers who were performing at dog shows.
So, she took a chance and combined her two loves - professional dance choreography and dogs -her golden retriever, Keeper into dancing with dogs performances. She spent hour after hour, day after day training Keeper, a highly intelligent golden, who picked up freestyle dancing, disco moves, shake your groove and the mumba to name just a few. He was totally devoted to Linda. He loved her so and would do anything to please her no matter the length of time, the obstacles to overcome and energy drain. Linda's love spurred him to learn each step and turn, each position and each running prance of all the eight dances.
Finally, after weeks of intense, daily practice, the time came for her first performance in front of a real, huge audience at a major dog show in Kansas City. She was so thankful to get that first break. But when she stood at the floor edge ready to run out in front of all those people, she froze and shook in doubt and fear.
With Keeper by her side, she closed her eyes, said a prayer and gathered the courage to step over that challenge change line from the old familiar life and self into the new. And she did. She mustered her power and her burning love desire to win no matter what. Once she heard the first notes of her music, her love of dance and her love of Keeper ignited her feet and swept her through their dance routine.
When the music and dance routine stopped, she saw people beginning to pop out of their seats and stand with roaring applause. A shocked Linda and Keeper received a standing ovation.
Linda found her love and destiny - she dances with dogs. Linda and Keeper competed in the show ring. They performed and wowed audiences at events, fundraisers, special occasions and nursing homes. Soon, Linda started getting requests from all over the world including Canada and Japan to perform with Keeper. People marveled at it. They loved it. Linda could see how happy it was making people.

She broke free, flew to fly over the corporate cuckoo's cube and grew into a swan doing what she loved. Here are a few of Linda and Keeper's dancing with dog's successes:
World Freestyle Champions
                             Kibbles Select Dog food commercial - Let's mambo
Teaching workshops in canine musical freestyle dance
                             Traveled and performed all over the U.S. and having a ball
                             World Canine Freestyle Organization Feature
                             Over 50 seminars and workshops and counting
Linda's testament and thanks:
Linda says, "Personal freedom, for me, is no longer working an 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. job, and feeling "owned" by a supervisor or boss.  Time passed so slowly, at work, and I longed for my workday to end.  Now, days go by so quickly that I can't fit everything in.  Life has taken on a whole new meaning since I've broken free from that prison and am now "pursuing my passions, my purpose."  

My days are filled with spending quality time with my beloved Goldens, Keeper and Disco and their obedience, musical freestyle, agility training and fun times together.  I have time for daily walks with Keeper and Disco to snuggle in my lap each evening, and time for wet kisses.  Also, more time for family and friends, plus I feel closer to God than ever before.  I love my part-time job as a fitness instructor, and I feel better physically, mentally, and spiritually because of it.  I thank God for these blessings and give Him all the credit. And she thanks God for the white knight real estate company for letting her go to fly free



So, a misfit ugly duckling turned into a liberated swan, Linda bravely and passionately followed her life's different drummer beat and changed the world with more happiness and love. Yes she did it even in the darkest hours of job loss. She built the courage, just knowing belief and the never quit persistence to follow the music of her different drummer. She found her purpose, passion and fulfillment. No more being trapped in the ugly duckling prison. She transformed herself into the beautiful misfit swan free to fly away free into the dawn of her new, true love destiny and live in harmony with her different drummer music.












Linden
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