Do something you're NOT good at - live outside your comfort zone

I have this bumper sticker on my car, it says... "Do something you are not good at - live outside your comfort zone."

I had to remind myself this morning why I originally purchased this sticker. Far too often in life we find things that we are really good at and stick to doing just them. Most of us fall into this trap. I so frequently hear people say, "Oh no, I don't dance, I'm not good at dancing." I often am guilty of the same... especially when it comes to group sport!

Whoever said life was limited to things that we are good at? That could make for a very boring existence! Surely life isn't just about doing things that we are good at over and over again? Its about enjoyment and trying new things, gaining new experiences.

I was forced to take some of my own advice this morning. I had become quite apprehensive about the course I had enrolled in to do this week. Its a ballet summer school which will concentrate largely on intesive technical study, something I have not undertaken for quite some time and was never extremely good at (although I always enjoyed it). Given the nature of this course, I will no doubt be the eldest by far (at least by 10 years) and the largest in the class. I will also most likely be the least experienced as it has been sometime that I've focused on my ballet technique.

I was having second thoughts about it this morning before I hopped in my car to go to work, and then I saw my bumper sticker and thought, "You love these classes!" Remember last time you did it how much fun it was and how invigorating it was to be around young people. It doesn't matter if you're not as good as the others. If you were perfect you wouldn't need to go anyway and it wouldn't be any fun because you would have nothing to learn!"

I'm starting to think my $3.00 bumper sticker was a good investment!

Dance like no one is Watching!

Last night I danced as if no one was watching! Yesterday was a particularly low day for me. Nothing in particular had triggered my low feeling...it was just one of those days: end of the week; fatigue; energy low; too much time in front of the computer; some of my projects not moving as fast as I'd like; not enough time spent with loved ones... I was down.

I arrived home with the energy of a stick of glue! Fortunately for me, my husband shares my love of spanish music and had a new flamenco CD playing. It was a CD that mixed old and traditional sounding flamenco songs into new style dances and it immediately made me want to move.

However we live in a small apartment with very little space once the lounge and TV were placed. I stepped tentatively onto the balcony (which faces a very busy main road) and I thought, "what the heck" - I flung my arms into the air and stomped around my little balcony as if I were dancing the streets of seville! And boy did it feel great!

We've all heard the saying: "Work as if you have no money, love as if you've never been hurt, dance like no one is watching, sing like no one is listening, and live each day as if its your last..." well I'm dancing like no one is watching...and I'm working on the rest!

Enjoy!

Despite the fact that I advocate Dance as an artistic form of expression above and beyond anything else, the fact is, I am a trained dancer as well which means that I have gone through years of formal, technical training (especially in ballet). Anyone who has undergone such training will understand the importance of perfecting technique above anything else - the training is rigid, tough and inflexible: but is a vital part of a dancer's journey. (And we all love it)

Last night I attended the last part of a 3 night course of Flamenco dancing in which we were privileged enough to have a flamenco artist from spain instruct us. Admittedly I struggled with the bulerias and the timing and I'm sure I had a puzzled look on my face for most of the time as I tried to make my feet move quickly enough to the fast and syncopated rhythm and I was constantly frustrated with my inability to perform the steps perfectly.

It was at one of these points that the teacher turned to face us and said, "I had hoped by now you would be enjoying the dancing, but you are not. You are all worried about the steps and thinking what is coming next and you are not enjoying it. Remember, dancing is about enjoying and feeling the movement - just move and feel beautiful - the steps will come - this is flamenco!"

I breathed a sigh of reflief. This is what I always say, and yet in the heat of the moment, in the class, I had once again become a young perfectionist, caught up in technique, but lost all feeling. I remembered quickly why I had come to the workshops and thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the class: despite my completely messed up footwork!

Teaching and Expressive Arts

This morning I read a great article about teaching gifted students (check out the article at http://www.ronit.baras.com/ and it inspired me to write something about teaching through movement.

For many, dance is a creative art that is limited to those who who have a particular interest in dancing/performing. But this is such a limiting interpretation of the usefulness of the art. Not only is it a great form of self expression, it is also something that is wonderful to incorpoate into teaching which will appeal to kinsesthetic and visual learners alike.

In a year 8 Japanese class, we learnt a famoous Japanese song that had a simple dance to go with it. There's no question about it, the new vocabulary was more easily acquired when accompanied with movement.

But it wasn't just the quick learning that took place that was so wonderful about it; it was the enjoyment that the students had from the lesson that really convinced me to use dance more often. They laughed at themselves and at each other and me while we danced and asked if they could be videod! I then had some very keen students who wanted to have a dance off!

It really is a great way for students to express themselves. No technical knowledge is required - just a willingness to move and a good sense of humour!

Let it all Hang Out!

How many times have I used the expression, "Can't wait to go home and unwind," or "Can't wait for the weekend to let my hair down!" When I say this, I tend to mean it more literally than perhaps the average person. I'm currently working a job where I'm sitting all day and looking at a computer: this is hard for a kinesthetic person. I literally feel like my whole body has been clamped up the entire day!

But its not just my physical body that has been clamped up the entire day... If 80% of all communication takes place through body language, and I've been unable to move all day, then I have not been able to express myself for the whole day! That's 8 hours of under-expression for me! So when I say that I'm going home to "unwind" and "let my hair down," I really mean it!

I literally "let my hair out" pick out some music that reflects how I feel, and I just dance. At this point in the day, its really important for me not to do a set dance - it has to be improvised, it has to be exactly what I feel like doing at the time. Whatever movement I feel like doing, I just let it out. This is how I tell my day's story. This is how I say, "Gosh, it was a busy day!" Gee that person annoys me!" "I hate my computer!" etc. I'm sure I look completely ridiculous some days - but it feels wonderful, its both relaxing and energising at the same time: and its a way of letting go.

Finished off with a long stretch and a hot shower and I'm ready for whatever the evening brings!