Ballerinas in pink slippers, Dancing With the Stars contestants and Step It Up movies are a few things that might come to mind when one hears the word “dance.” Traced back as far as 3000 B.C., dance has played a significant role in society. Even the Bible mentions the art; Ecclesiastes 3:4 reads “a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance.” While it can be argued that watching dancing is enjoyable, actually engaging in dancing always leads one to ask the question: can I dance or not?
A young girl watching a ballet for the first time might be captivated by the dancers fluid motions. As the dancer spins gracefully on the dark stage, she keeps her composure and seems oblivious to the hundreds of eyes watching her every motion. As she finishes her final turn, she ends the sequence with a slight bow as the audience rises to their feet in applause. She’s free and she’s more than an artist: she’s art itself.
When I was younger, I fell in love with ballets such as The Nutcracker and Swan Lake. I dreamed of perfecting pirouettes and leaping across the stage; I would spin around aimlessly in my living room, unaware that I looked nothing like the girls on stage.
My 10th grade year of high school, I tried out for my school’s dance team. Since the sponsor’s daughter, who was also trying out, scored the lowest out of all those who auditioned, it was decided everyone who tried out would be let on the team. This team was far from Swan Lake. I quickly learned, and everyone else pointed out, that I could not keep beat to save my life. During dances I was either a beat ahead or behind, which threw off the synchronization of the entire performance.
Another girl on the team bullied me and constantly complained about my inadequate dancing to the point that I went home from many practices in tears. I used to be awed by dancing, and now I dreaded going to practice. Did I miss a footnote in the Bible where “a time to dance” actually meant to be read “a time to dance (only if you’re talented)”? Sure the ballerina in The Nutcracker had talent, but did she dance because she had talent or because she loved dancing?
No, I wasn’t a good dancer. Many people, I’ve learned, are not. But I don’t think the point of dancing was to ever impress someone; besides, that’s objective anyway. Maybe those dancers in 3000 B.C. danced, well, for fun. This made me question what else in my life I’ve sacrificed because of others opinions. How much happiness do we let go out of fear of being imperfect? It’s been almost three years since I graduated high school, and I doubt anyone I graduated with remembers if I was a beat off during the half-time dance. Let go of the insecurities, and dance if you want.. even if you can’t. Because at the end of the day, it’s not about being an artist or a perfect ten, it’s about being happy.
I like the way it closes -- not about dancing for an audience or art but about doing it for the personal effects. I think, though, that the middle is too general. Rather than focus on a specific memory, you offer a lot of summary. If you want to do more with this, that's where you could work.
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