This is Lys writing today. In this blog post, I wanted to give a nod to the importance of filling your life with the activities and people you love. 

I was reminded of this last week as our fearless leader and Flavor Company Artistic Director, Belle Martin, was away on business. Her being away meant that those of us who normally get to dance with her Tuesday through Friday didn't get to last week. What an absence it was! It reminded us of how very important dance is to our well-being and how important Belle is as a facilitator who allows us to access the best parts of ourselves during those dance sessions. 

Which brings me to mention a comment that Belle has heard thousands of times. 

People say this to her after performances. After a performance, it's somewhat understandable. They have probably just watched her perform a super-intricate Argentine Tango show. Argentine Tango at the professional level is a dance form that takes many, many years, intensive training, and tens of thousands of hours to perfect. It's like when people see a Broadway show and leave saying, "I love to sing, but...." People are comparing themselves to what they have just seen. 

BUT - and this is important - I've also heard these comments from people watching a group of us dancing very accessible social dance forms like Groove DanceFloor, TranscenDANCE or Dance Parties. In these cases, it's thier fears getting in the way. It's their mind not wanting to try something new for fear that they might not "be good at it". This, my friends, makes me sad. Because if you love something and it makes you feel good, you should do it! Life is short. You never know when the opportunity will no longer be available.

Take a look at this video. Note the gentleman in the white shirt. He was passing by when he noticed us. 

It's very probable he was thinking he wouldn't be good at doing whatever it was he was witnessing. I can think of a million reasons he could have decided not to approach us. 

But, he chose to make the most of his day. He joined us - even before hearing the music. (You don't see this in the clip, but he started dancing with us based only on seeing us moving. We use headsets when we are outdoors so that we don't disturb anyone. But, that means that people can't hear the music we're listening to. That means this guy saw a bunch of people moving around, thought it looked fun enough to try, approached us, and started dancing - all without hearing a single note! Of course, we quickly gave him a headset so he could hear the music.) I think you can see the smile on his face and would agree that his bravery in joining us was rewarded.  

So, I'll leave you with this. 

Is there any opportunity to which you have ever said, "I would love to, but...."? 

What was it? 

And, most importantly, are you willing to do anything about it before the opportunity passes you by?

#wellbeing #flavorcompanydance #theworldgroovemovement