... don't lose sight of the journey.
Jane Cotterell
A piano sits in the corner of Jane Cotterell's living room. The winter light from the woods out back filters in like a fog. Her cat, Honey, curls up on a deck chair nearby, oblivious to the conversation.
Music and dance always have been a part of Cotterell's world.
She was born in Hollywood (yes, that Hollywood) and lived in both southern and northern California, and her love of the arts accompanied her to Iowa when she moved to be closer to her daughters and their families.
She taught ballet, modern dance, cotillion, ballroom and social dancing. She knows some of the professional dancers on the TV show "Dancing with the Stars."
"I thought the dancing was beautiful," she said. "But it becomes a life-and-death matter. Who is going to win?"
She is encouraged that such shows have revitalized dancing. She observes the dancing is more athletic, but it also has evolved into more of an "in-your-face" performance.
"I sort of feel like that is unfortunate in a lot of ways," she said.
At 82 she remains graceful in thought, style and movement. Her advice flows naturally from her own passion.
"Goals are certainly important and necessary, but you shouldn't lose sight of the journey," she said. "That has been very helpful to me in my adult life. Sometimes you end up in a different place than you thought you were going to be."
— Susan Harman
