by Mary Ellen O'Connell

Created on: August 24, 2008

I dance to relax. I dance for joy. I dance to create space. I dance to speak in motion. I dance to let go of tragedy. I dance to undo the past. I dance to paint a picture of myself. I dance to stay young. I dance to carry on the Retro past. I dance because God gave me legs. I dance to overcome apathy. I dance to cross social barriers. I dance to make me smile. I dance till my feet hurt. I dance until sweat is rolling off of my body. I dance to the rhythms of the drum. Sometimes, I sing while I dance. Sometimes, I miss the beat. Sometimes, I feel faint. The dance remains the same. We are humans in perpetual motion, full of live, living in the moment of musical bliss. Everyone's dance is different. The benefits are unique to each in their moving prose. Our freedom is released; we lose all of our inhibitions. The pure electricity of the lights around you, the firm floor, wet and slick. A dancing world is not a warring world. Dance releases the human spirit in the fullness of life. One only thinks of life, while moving to music. Music creates unity through the dance. Humans crave the touch of one another, and through dance, hands unite. Heads are touching. Husbands and wives, reunite in passion that has long past. Young boys overcome their shyness. Young girls feel butterflies in their stomachs, patiently awaiting their first kiss. Dancing crosses all age, race, religion and sexual orientation barriers. The interpretation lies within its creator, letting time stand still. While our planet slowly turns, our bodies are suspended. Our minds clear and our pain is relinquished.

I recently read and interview that was conducted with Dick Van Dyck. When he was asked how he continues to dance at the age of 82, like he did in his past productions, he answered, "I never stopped moving." We were created to move. To stop our movement, creates unhealthy energy within us. Our bodies were not meant to remain motionless. I cannot image a world a world without music, thus I cannot image a world without dance. Marching is the movement of control and anger. Dancing is the movement of our soul singing. Our minds search daily for respite from the transparent world that we exist in. Our minds are clearer, after exercise, and dancing is my best cardiovascular workout. I always feel better and sleep better after a night of dancing. If only the rest of the world could find a way to release their anger, anxiety, fear and pain the same way, well maybe someday. And so, there is always a time to dance. Here's to dancing away the upcoming election.

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