being at peace with risk

I believe the work of opening yourself up to a freer movement practice comes from negotiating with your internal dialogue. I think this is in our awareness on a grand scale and the step that we are (re)discovering is the myriad of ways that it can happen. I have a collection of tools that I bring to my practice to soften voices that don’t support me and make space for those that do.

This is no one’s fault but I danced for everyone but myself for a long time. I am a recovering people pleaser, so the work of softening my inner dialogue has been mind-bendingly freeing. This work has already been life changing and I think I’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg in what’s to come. These seeds are only just rooted and sprouting and I am already in love.

Having a more…

curiosity-drive,

experience-driven,

fun-driven,

appreciation-driven,

open-to-not-knowing-what-will happen driven,

open-to-something-going-wrong-driven

open-to-myself-as-I-already-am-driven

dance/movement/wellness practice is an endless spiral that we can all be learning more about. This is about learning how to be and to grow in our bodies, our only permanent homes. And I believe the key to engaging with this endless spiral lies in the work of our internal dialogue – who are we dancing for, what are we dancing from, why are we dancing at all? Outside of our training as expert dancers, what does it bring to us as living beings to express ourselves through movement?

Thank God for my awe-inspiring, wise, and brave teachers who have showed me how to craft through the tools of breath work, grounding, clearing energy, building endurance, reflecting, and sharing. I use them with the intention of making myself guiltlessly curious about the things that come to me naturally. I let go of…

“I should become better at this.”

“I need to move like that in order to be current.”

“I’ll save this video cause I will probably need to learn how to do it later.”

“I’ll follow this person because lots of people follow them.”

“I will change myself to match the image of that teacher/company.”

“I need to change myself in order to be successful.”

“I have not been successful yet because I have not put in enough effort.”

Behind them I can hear…

“What could happen if I leaned further”?

“Can I be here until I fall?”

“I can be steady during this discomfort.”

“I’ve never tried this before but I want to.”

“This feels so nice.”

“I’m so glad I showed up for my practice today.”

“I’ll let the music move me.”

“I’ll let gravity move me.”

“I’ll let myself be moved.”

“I’ll trust the ideas that come up.”

If you are aware, curious, or already doing work around this, I’d love to share my upcoming class with you. movin’ n groovin’ is a guided improvisational class, created with the intention of exploring these thoughts in a private community. Come with knowledge and we can share and explore in an even deeper way together. As a teacher, I think of myself as a coordinator in the uncovering of things, not an updater in the “truth of things”. All voices, thoughts, and places of being that walk this path are welcome.

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being at peace with risk is a gateway to movin' n groovin' because it is so honestly the process of learning what to let go of without needing something new to hold on to. I would love to grow with you there.