Following up from last week, I’m pleased to report that my apartment now has a few more holiday decorations scattered strategically around the living room. I even baked eggnog scones yesterday and today, I’m working on a loaf of challah bread (taking advantage of the fact that this week is both Hanukkah AND Christmas).

Another follow-up from last week’s blog post, the short film I wrote about was released on YouTube! I was in awe of how Lindsey Cira, the woman behind the piece, edited all of the elements together to create an absolutely beautiful final product!

Like I wrote last week, I had such a great experience being a part of this artistic project. It gave me a chance to be creative and just play without worrying about doing it “right” or being judged for my performance. It was an incredibly freeing experience, and I suspect that it’s already affected my ballroom dancing. After seeing the final film, my heart just about exploded with love and pride. I feel so incredibly honored.

I normally would blast the internet the second after I saw the video, so everyone I knew would be able to see this awesome artwork as soon as possible. This time, I waited a day. I was hit with so many different emotions at once. Love, pride, honor, anxiety, excitement, a touch of fear… It was strange to see myself, especially my dancing. I never watched the raw footage of the improvisation I did on the day of filming. The clips in the video were the first time.

We all tend to cringe when we watch ourselves dance on video. We immediately start picking out our mistakes and flaws. You never look the same way as you felt while you were dancing.

This time was different. Lindsey so expertly edited my dancing together with the spoken words and other elements of the film that I didn’t cringe. Everything went together so beautifully; it was almost strange to see that I was a part of it and there was nothing to critique.

It’s still difficult for me to find the right words to describe my experience with this project and my feelings at seeing the final cut. So I think I’ll keep it short this time and instead of trying to tell you, I’ll just show you.

I hope you enjoy “Ode to Vincent,” an original short film by Lindsey Cira.