All about the Joy

Original Post Date: Thursday, September 9, 2010 at 11:17am

I like to write down the things I think about that are dance related. This quote kicked off a string of thoughts for me.

‎"It's all about the joy. When I quit worrying about where I was, I started dancing instead of doing the moves." -- Barbara Eaton


This quote is so absolutely true.  Too often we get caught up in being PERFECT.
Don't get me wrong, perfection is a good thing.  But, we get so caught up in making our dance perfect that we often forget to embrace the mistakes, the accidents, the forgotten movements as something that is organic.  So you spent hours working out a choregraphy, you poured out buckets of sweat and blood practicing it. You get to the show and wouldn't you know it.. About a minute into your song your brain has completely forgotten what it is you were supposed to do. So, you wing it.  You have four or more minutes of music to go.. you can't just run off the stage, people are watching.  Little snippets of memory to your choregraphy jump into your brain and you perform those moves.. You are out there on the stage, in front of a crowd and you are winging it because you have no choice.
This is a frustrating thing to have happen.  It can send a lot of nasty thoughts about yourself whirling through you head.
Of course, that's when something strange happens.

You are done performing and someone who has watched you dance countless times before says " That was awesome! You looked like you were having fun and it was just amazing.. You blew me away."

Of course, in your own mind the inner critic is just screaming at you.  Telling you that you suck, that what you just did was utter garbage and demanding to know why you are wasting your time with this.

What's a dancer to do?
Of course you are gracious, you say your thanks and all the while you are abusing yourself.

Here's what really happened. Your mind forgot about what it is you had planned for it, because it had plans for you. It was determined to force you to move organically.  Move in a way that makes your soul happy.  Your mind, didn't give a rip about the rules, the count of the music, it honestly didn't care.  Since it has no ego.

Here's where the scenario gets even stranger for the dancer.  You see the video of that performance, you see the photographs. All the through both you are smiling...  Just beaming.  Every image you see is just full of joy.  Passion for what you are doing and you are just on Fire!

Sometimes, we have to let go.  Not always, but sometimes. We have to be more gentle with ourselves when we have an oops like that.  It's hard to do.
To put in in geek terms..  Sometimes we have to "Use the Force".   It didn't let Skywalker down.. Why would it let us down??