Day 118: “Open Up”
I was always told to open up more when I dance.
I college, I joined a hip hop dance team. We practiced choreography every Sunday — working on sliding, popping and locking, and some cool tricks.
However, the commitment became a bit stressful for me whenever we would come together and provide positive feedback or constructive criticism.
I was always told that I need to come out of my shell more — my arms were too stiff or I should widen my shoulders. I needed to be bigger than I was — to radiate my energy more.
At a 5Rhythm dance class yesterday — it’s kinda like a spiritual dance class where people dance however wildly or weirdly as they want — yesterday I used the safe space to experiment with opening myself up.
As people did a makeshift Michael Jackson impression with a salsa vibe — or as another person mixed aboriginal ritualistic fire dance with hip hop, I tried to stretch my arms as wide as possible — opening my chest and tossing my head back — all while my feet moved to the music.
The theme of the class was Chaos, and the freedom of it all was exhilarating.
There were moments, about half an hour into the class, where you felt yourself fall into a haze — eyes half closed — your body moving in any whatever way you wanted to move. No one judged you because they were just as weird — probably weirder. Everyone was slowly breaking down their own filter that would say, “Stop doing that! That’s weird!”
Instead, whatever thought popped into your mind, you allowed your body to express. You were guided by emotion, and truthfully, it was a refreshingly beautiful moment.
If I Seem To Wander 