Music & Motion
Ready? Set. Dance!
My heart speeds up whenever I hear music. Whether it’s a popular song on the radio, an acoustic guitar player at a café, or the raucous made-up songs my husband belts our while cooking dinner…the beat, the rhythms, and the melodies instantly makes my heart lighten up and my soul come alive!
With song comes motion. First it begins with my fingers. A tap here. A double tap there. Then my head. A nod here. A sassy sway there. Then I embrace the music and let my body lead the way. Shoulders to chest to hips to legs. Everything starts moving and I feel all my stress and troubles melt away as I let the music guide my whole being into a dance of carefree joy and merriment!
Music and dancing has continually been a source of healing for me. For weeks I had to stay home to recuperate from an ankle injury or from my lumpectomy or from chemo treatments. Photography and other activities helped to keep me occupied most of the time. But during the times when I was too sick to move about, and watching television or reading got to be too boring, I would play some music through Pandora and close my eyes. In my mind I would imagine myself dancing to the different types of songs playing…doing ballet to classical music or hip hop moves to top hits. Even though I couldn’t physically move, I was still able to let my mind take me away from my boring sofa and into a world of motion and liveliness.
During the times when I felt good enough to be up and about, I would play my music even louder and get some blood flow action going! The best part about dancing at home? If ever I felt pooped out from moving about I could just plop back down on the sofa for a few moments…then get back up and dance again! There was no one around to criticize my techniques or judge how grungy I looked in my pajamas and tussled hair. I wasn’t concerned with anything but letting my body move how it wanted to depending on the music playing and how I was feeling. When I felt sad, my movements would be slow and soothing…sometimes I would just let my tears roll. When I felt excited or angry, my movements would be explosive and chaotic. When I felt happy and silly, I would skip and jump and twirl in a circle…laughing out loud!
I am sooooo excited to be starting a new class where I can share my love of music and motion with everyone. I hope to teach that dancing isn’t something to be intimidated about. It’s not something that you need formal training for! Dancing is about carefree movements to express your thoughts and emotions. There is no right or wrong. Only the love of self and awareness of how music can do so much to relieve stress, encourage self-strength and promote self-healing.
To view class dates for the Motion and Music class visit: http://wellnesswithin.org//programcalendar/music-motion/