The gift that keeps on giving

Christmas is only 5 days away

As I sit here at the desk waiting for my private lesson student to arrive, I am reminded of the many dance-related blessings in my life. To be surrounded by sparkling holiday decorations in a pristinely clean studio, or be a part of a warm dance community- the intangible things in life that matter the most. The gifts under the tree in the back of the ballroom are begging to be opened- a new pair of dance shoes inside, perhaps? A gift certificate? Or simply the gift of love from friends and family around the holidays. Dance is a wonderful thing- it lets you discover new things, increase your daily physical activity, and even surprise yourself when you think, "Gee, that felt...really good!"

The thing I love most about dancing is the connection to the music. There's something special about correlating base rhythms in music to impulses you feel inside your body when a song you like comes on. To be able to physically express yourself while moving around the floor to music is an amazing feeling everyone should experience at least once in their lifetime. Here's a secret: I never listened to or even liked Latin music until I learned how to dance to it. Once I understood the instrumentation and basic steps, however, Salsa dancing became a fun social activity for my boyfriend and me. As we grew closer as a couple, our dancing improved and we began performing for various functions and teaching group classes as well as private lessons. We branched out into other areas of partner dancing, i.e., Ballroom, Argentine Tango, and, most recently, Theatre Arts. In short, dance has opened many doors for me-- the nerdy science girl who followed her passion for dancing.

Christmas comes only once a year- but dancing is forever!