It may be the day before Christmas, but it’s also Sunday. As you know, Sunday is my main practice day, so even though it would have been easy to skip, I still went to the studio to practice. I didn’t want to skip anyway. Friday was my last dance lesson of 2017 (unless Teacher decides he wants to teach next week) and I didn’t want to stop dancing! Apparently I wasn’t the only one. There was a LOT of people at the studio! More than I’ve ever seen on a Sunday morning. I’m guessing we all had the same thought, that we’d have the studio to ourselves!

It was nice that we didn’t though. Dance isn’t something we do when we don’t have something better to do, it is the better thing! So why wouldn’t we dance on Christmas Eve?

During Friday’s lesson, Teacher wanted me to work on feeling the dance, instead of thinking about the dance, which actually took a lot of thinking on my part. I’ve spent so much lesson time in analysis mode over the proper technique that it’s hard to turn it off. I’ve also developed habits from trying to perfect certain aspects of my dancing that no longer serve me, but it’s hard to let them go.

I’ve been writing about this new chapter that I feel I’m entering in my dancing. 2018 is going to be a year of taking ownership of my dancing and who I am as a dancer. That means I need to transition from trying to dance “the right way” to dancing the way that’s right for me. My body isn’t shaped like everyone else’s and it doesn’t move like everyone else (my legs certainly aren’t as flexible as some!). So now that I have a decent grasp on the general technique of ballroom, I can focus more on how I can use that technique in the best way specifically for me.

I like the rules of technique. They give me right and wrong answers, and the scientist in me finds a lot of comfort in that. The artist in me is restricted, but she’s used to being restricted. All this creativity in dancing and authoring has made her push for more freedom though. Less restrictions mean more possibilities, which are exciting, but also a little scary. Because I’m working to discover what is right for just me, no one else can give me the correct answer. You usually have to go through a lot of wrongs before you find what’s right, and that’s not a comfortable journey.

I’m not shying away though. I’ve learned to acknowledge the fear and go for it anyway. #Doitscared is going to be one of my mantras in the new year. It actually already is!

I am on vacation from the day job until January 2 (10 whole days including the weekends!!), so stay tuned. I’m going to be writing, dancing (even if it’s on my own) and working on the next Practice Guide video. It was unanimous – the next video will be on how to practice with limited space, which means you guys will get a tour of my apartment and see how I get my ballroom on at home (that is, if you’re on the list).

If you’re celebrating Christmas, have a fabulous day tomorrow! Everyone else, happy dancing!