I imagine that my life is me floating in the universe. Sometimes I keep to spaces I know, where I am already a star, and other times I venture out into the unknown, where my shine is dimmed as I try to find my bearing.
Flying into a new space carries with it the risk of failure, the frightening prospect of having to start over, to learn again. That period of learning or initiation can be painful, and I recoil back into my known world.
But courage, or foolishness, urges me to venture! To try new stuff. As I take the first unsure step, my heart tells me it is OK not to know. It is OK not to shine. Take your time.
However, like in salsa dancing, my first step is wrong! I am a leftie and salsa for women starts with the right; So my friend tells me. She introduced me to 'social dancing' in Cape Town and the amazing dancers there make me look bad!
My salsa moves are worse than basic. I am forced to stand by and watch. I follow the dancers feet with eager eyes. The synchrony is mesmerizing. Such rhythm and grace! Exactly what I am looking for in my art and in my dance.
Aaah! I am no match for these seasoned dancers, or is it they who are no match for me? That idiom is so confusing but you get my point: These are sophisticated salsa dancers. Their finesse challenges me to enroll for classes.
Or maybe, I need to just accept that I don't know salsa. I really don't have time for dance classes now anyway. There are the advanced swimming and cycling classes that I must take and my poor body wouldn't hack salsa as well. But I will keep it in mind. I will learn salsa at some point.
Labels: Learning salsa