Dancing

For many years now I have enjoyed a wonderful show on Fox called So You Think You Can Dance. Every year I pick my favorite contestant; the one who I think embodies greatness through skill, technique, versatility and a genuine love of dance that inspires me.  I have a few favorites this year but I find myself smiling the most when a guy named Cyrus Spencer is dancing.

This kid has such limited dancing expereince. He had no idea what a jette was when he started the show. He's trying. He loves to dance. He is humble and unassuming and he is very unlikely to win the top honors on the show...but for me he is a true inspiration. This Saturday is National Dance Day and I plan to take the girls to the big city to experience some of the dance events planned for Seattle.

Tonight for Family Home Evening we read our daughters a book called Dumpy La Rue by Elizabeth Winthrop.

In the book, Dumpy, a pig on a farm decides he wants to dance. Everyone he tells discourages him. But he persists and over time the nay-sayers can't help but get on board that Dumpy had a good idea. They even join in. There is a line in the story when the other animals are thinking about trying dancing too and they ask Dumpy what music he's dancing to and he says, "You can't hear it, of course. It's all in my head. You have it to. If you want to dance, if you want to glide, just close your eyes and listen inside." In some ways we are each like the pig who wanted to dance. I am giving myself permission to listen to the music inside and do what is right for me, no matter what.

I've been listening to a wonderful audio book I borrowed through the King County Library system. It's called The Ultimate Anti-Career Guide. In a nutshell, it talks about figuring out and doing what you were born to do. It blends an East meets West philosophy to help frenzied Americans learn to listen to the music inside. If you get a chance I highly recommend listening to this inspiring collection. It's available on Amazon for $40! Get it now!

I am 32 years old and as I look back over my career that spans about 12 years now I can see so many mis-steps. I identify mis-steps as times when I didn't listen to my own heart. I spent a lot of time listening to what someone else wanted for me. I don't regret my past, the jobs I've had, or the mis-steps I've made. But I will learn from them. From now on, I will "listen inside" and keep dancing.