Life is just a dance

Dance can be a lot of things: a workout, an art form, a hobby, a career, an entertainment,  a party starter, a way to connect with others, a way to connect with our body. It is also one of the most freeing activities because, among many other things, it requires us to be absolutely present. It is mindfulness; it is heart, head and soul in unison.

That being said, my mind started wondering slightly today while dancing. As I was moving my whole body I realized that dance is the perfect analogy for life. On one hand, and my choreographer friends can tell me if this is true, every dance contains some form of symmetry. If you move your hip to the right, you eventually would need to move your hip to the left. If you move a few steps forward, you eventually have to step backwards to begin somewhere close to where you started. Dance is then, a metaphor for karma,  for “you get what you give” kind of thing, for “we always come back to home.”

On the other hand, besides all of the technicalities of each dance, the main component is intuition. Try thinking on what the next step is going to be and your feet will automatically paralyze. Your body, however, knows where it wants and needs to go. Let your intuition guide you and you might become your own kind of Isadora Duncan.

Just like in life, the most effective bullet to a happy dance is being too self-conscious. When we  accept that we might look terribly ridiculous in the dance floor is when dance gives its biggest gift: freedom. What can be more liberating than taking ourselves as un-seriously as possible, accepting the risk of ridicule and knowing that even then, we will survive? Dance is then a very appropriate silencer for the most dangerous judging mind: our own. 

I am lucky I grew up in a culture where dance was a natural act, not an ability, not even a choice. Once again, I am glad that swinging my body today made me realize how I want my life to be: a happy, sometimes awkward, always liberating dance.