Once when I was about twelve I took ballet. It did not last long and I was not good. There is not much more to say about that. Twelve is NOT a good time to start unless you are slim, willowy, very flexible and a natural at remembering multiple steps....all of which I am most definitely not. So fast forward to now. I am thirty three, soon to be thirty four. I am the not slimmest I have ever been, the least flexible, have no core to speak of and my brain is fried ~ TOTALLY fried. One day my neighbor and good friend came over ( just before Christmas) and told me she wanted to start taking ballet. It was something she had never done and she had always wanted to. I told her of a new ballet school I had heard of in our town that would probably be willing to organize something like that. I said, quite decidedly, that I would never do ballet and had no desire to, but all the power to her. Later that evening I went grocery shopping with my friend Laura that I have never gone grocery shopping with. As we perused the aisles filling up our carts until they were hard to push...I saw the lady that I thought I recognized that was running the dance school (recognized her from facebok). I felt I had to ask her about this class for my friend (Emily) and so I did. She said that she was 'just in the middle' of organizing a beginners ballet class for adults. My friend Laura piped up that SHE would want to be in it also. I think at that moment my fate was sealed. I went home and facebooked the dance school director, roped my sister into taking the class and just like that we had four of us committed to going. The next afternoon I called Emily and told her not only was I in ballet with her I had the class organized and the time set up! It was so obviously something that was supposed to happen. Another one of my friend's signed up also, and last night we had our first class!
I have not done anything out side of my house regularly, much less exercise, much less DANCE, in, oh, quite a few years!!! I went out and bought ballet shoes and tried to figure out what to wear. Emily went into the city and bought a leotard and shoes and tried on a tutu and she LOOKED like a ballerina the first night. The funny thing, to me, was that two hours before the class I was ready, so was Em and so was my sister. The first outfit I tried on I felt like a donut and so thankfully I found another one that felt more ballet(ish) to me. So after changing a couple times (that was me) ~ Em was in her leotard, skirt, pink leg warmers and looking like she'd been dancing for years, my sister also was looking very tall and slender and dancerish; we were painting our nails, putting on lipstick, doing our hair in buns and for once (and this meant a lot to me) I felt different. I felt a little less weighed down and a little more care free. When we got to the dance studio Laura was waiting and we all went in together. Above us it sounded like a herd of elephants were charging (that was the adult tap class) and it made me smile. We signed up and payed and headed up the stairs to the studio. It ended up that there were ten woman in the class. Their ages ranged from probably mid sixties to early twenties and there were all shapes and sizes. The teacher has been teaching for many many years and is kind, no nonsense and when she commanded, 'To the bar!' it was funny where my brain went. It was also funny when she asked if anyone, 'had any problems with jumping,' and I was the one that knew she meant would anyone pee there pants!
I learned so much yesterday. When you stand at the bar you are not to hold onto it but just to gracefully place your hand on it for balance and there were all these feet positions and ways to hold your arm with your elbow higher and your thumbs tucked in and your hips forward, butt tucked in, shoulders back. We tried some turns and some pointing toes and all sorts of interesting words that I do not remember. The music was beautiful, the studio freezing and I had so much fun!!! I am still NOT a dancer. I feel like everyone else there looked so graceful and beautiful but at the same time I felt happy and like I had posture for the first time in a long time and it was lovely. After we were done and the winter boots were on and we were headed back home I got a text from my friend who had come and she said she had a smile on her face and she felt alive. That echoed my heart exactly. So to ballet we will go ~ every week. I can't imagine how things are going to go when I have to try to gracefully leap. I was already stumbling just from turning. I guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. The teacher already was correcting my arm and hand the first class and I was already reminded during stretching just how totally NOT flexible I am. It is going to be hilarious and fun and I am so glad it is all happening. Tansy the ballerina. Not exactly what I ever thought I'd say, but I am saying it and I have a smile on my face and I feel alive :)
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