I seldom realize that every day what I do is hard…the getting up and getting on with living my life. It is also many other things…challenging, fun, exciting…an ever growing, ever learning experience. I don’t always notice the underlying challenge. But sometimes a tiny moment brings up on the big screen how hard it is and I have to allow its presence for a moment.
Over the past eight weeks, four groups of Soho Dance LA dancers have spent hours together studying choreography, body movement and technique. Together we have accelerated our learning curves, bumped up against our personal challenges and discovered things we never knew we could do thanks to our incredible instructors, Raul Santiago and Yesenia Serratos.
One of our newest members, Gay, who took on gigantic goals with incredible courage, sent out a thank you yesterday to all those who supported her as she tackled both a partnered team and a ladies styling team routine for the first time. She shared with us a list of qualities she noticed in each of us. What she wrote about me shone the light on that place I usually keep hidden from myself, that place where I hide how hard it is sometimes to go on with my life after losing my late husband to cancer. Gay’s words to me were…
Tambre
Kindred spirit.
Strength, Grace, Passion, Determination, Perfection, Confidence.
Driven…in all that you do.
Thanks for opening up to me.
Gay, thank YOU for reminding me of what it has taken not for me to just survive my loss but to thrive. I know there are many kindred spirits out there facing their own unique challenges and recreating their lives beyond surviving. Yes to strength, grace, passion and determination. Yes to rediscovering that driven way I had always come at things in the past. To others struggling with loss or going through major life transitions unsure of how it will all work out, it takes time, patience and the support of others. But the hard work is worth it.
In those moments where the kind words of a fellow dancer touched the place that reminds me of everything it has taken to repair the damage, clear away the debris and build a new life, I realize I am stronger than I ever imagined and I can do this. It is hard…I will not lie…but it is SO worth it…and I am doing this…others are doing this…so can you.