Dear Jackknife,

You are the one I dominated as a young ballerina. My favorite. The one I couldn’t wait to build my strength back up to do. I have always struggled with grounding myself but I had no problem getting straight up in the air and holding it there. I could control my return to the floor so well. I was sad when I had to let you go for a while. But we are back together again. Though our relationship is different now as an adult, I still love you the most.

I still remember when the AT&T building, lovingly called the Batman building by Nashvillians, was completed in the 90’s. This was right after I moved to Nashville Ballet and would spend a lot more time downtown only a few blocks from this building. The skyline has changed a lot since then but I always enjoy seeing the Batman building standing tall and proud, making my city unique. Every time I got on the plane to come home or go back to New York, the city looked smaller. But I was always happy to see the Batman building standing out from all the other buildings.

I love you Nashville. I know I told my friends as a teen heading to New York for college and I thought forever, to never let me come back. “Have me committed if I say I want to come home.” Like so many things in life, the thing I didn’t plan, the thing I didn’t want to do is the thing that worked. Those are the things I needed to do and I loved most. Here I am almost nine years back in town and I’m so happy here. I am committed, mostly to my roots.

Love,

Heather

Photography by Jennifer Gouge