By Peggy Pollard, www.peggydance.weebly.com
I realized why I NEED to dance yesterday morning. Walking along West Cliff Drive, in a magnificent moment viewing a golden sunrise, it came to me. My weekend, packed with an overload of responsibilities, required heavy communication tasks. As usual, I had prepped all summer for this annual re-launch week of our campus program at the start of the university school year. But this time, not only was I also (reluctantly) elected President of a network of 24 campus groups, an urgent family responsibility popped up this month, requiring a blitz of advertising and interviewing, and other tasks. All this was in addition to our long-scheduled Waltz & Swing Dance Workshop Series this past week. (pssst . . . our Grand Finale Dance workshop is TODAY , so JUMP ON IN!) But, whooowheee baby … that old dread feeling of doom started growing in me. However could I handle all this? So naturally, just as I felt most on the tippy-top verge of overwhelm, my precious little workhorse, my powerhouse, customized-to-perfection cell phone, suddenly started blinking, ever-so-slowly, a greyed- out Apple logo sign. It’s logic-board had completely failed. Kaput. Dead. My heart sank. I stared at the pulsing screen in the palm of my hand. It was the most desperate and alone moment I’ve felt in years. My beloved device, with its silky electronic fingertip responsiveness, was frozen. Its tap-sensitive doorways into my vital chat group communities were now slammed closed in an instant. In that instant, my oh-so-deft handling of this week’s work was freezeframed in mid-air. My slate of impending victories started slipping, sliding into embarrassing failures. (why, oh, why did I ever agree to all this?) The weight of overwhelm descended upon me. And this is why I NEED to dance. Does your life in our ultra-connected fast lane ever feel that it’s teetering between your great opportunities and abysmal failures. Have you been working hard to take care of your family, your friends and your community to make their world a better place? But still have moments of discouragement and despair? So when is your moment that your life into perfect balance? When do you feel your deep peace, telling you, “This is what I’m meant to do, and it’s all working out perfectly.” You and I certainly need those moments, those hard-won, glorious moments, along the way for our mental health. We all need them too. That is why my dancers dance. “Dance, with some practice, brings synchronicity. Dance helps me feel unified and happy. Once I feel that in my dance, it flows to the rest of my life,” says “Joaquin.” Some discovered it early in life. “As a kid, every time I heard music with rhythm I would jump around. At age 11 I started learning dance steps and have been dancing ever since. Whenever I’m feeling low, I put on music and dance. Also, when I am very happy I dance,” says Kristin. “Every time I dance, I turn into a better version of me.” says Mike. “Dancing is not only a state of mind, but it helps with memory, physical fitness, and is also good for my heart. Besides it is fun.” Partner dancing in particular has a special goodness, that’s hard to find anywhere else. “Several years ago, I lost my wife of nearly a half century,” says “Clive,” returning to dance after a few decades away. “I tried yoga, but dance gives me the opportunity to put my arms around a woman again (and increase my heart rate!)” After our summer of grey foggy days, my golden sunrise walk on West Cliff, surrounded by the infinite calm of the Pacific Ocean, happy joggers and Dawn Patrol surfers, felt like just such a moment. A few other such moments give my life that kiss of bliss too: when I see my work is accomplished well, when I see other people’s lives are better because of my efforts. Supremely satisfying, that is. Now, some may call me crazy for trying to add an extra gig of teaching dance to my other responsibilities. Yes, this week I definitely wondered that myself. But as I strolled in the golden sunrise yesterday, it struck me. The reason I am launching this social dance community is . . . because dancing together makes all the other parts of my life become perfect. To share our dance moments in a positive presence of happy people, in a dance room, holding hands with a partner, moving synchronized to beautiful music, and to each other, as we revolve around the room as we bounce and sway. However awkwardly or skillfully, we express our inner artistry to the music, arms and legs bouncing, swaying, whirling. Suddenly it all comes together. Suddenly the myriad of disjointed pieces of our daily experience all feels unified into one beautiful whole. Suddenly, I realized, my life feels perfect. And yours will too. Join us today for our final day of Waltz Tribe Dance Community launch. View info www.peggydance.weebly.com
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FOOT Notes from Teacher PeggyAuthorPeggy Pollard has been teaching social/ballroom dance in Santa Cruz since 2010. Archives
September 2022
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