Who would have thought quite suddenly and without warning, we would go from days filled with school, work, extracurricular activities, travel on the weekends, and not a minute to spare….to nothing but being at home!? This became a reality for our entire nation in the spring of 2020. While some of us thrived, rested, and used this time to reset; others had a much more difficult time. What made the difference? For those still in quarantine, how can we grow during what has been said to be an unprecedented time?
For several of us, this time at home has been eye-opening. There is a stark contrast to the hustle and bustle of life pre-quarantine versus the relative calm this time has brought to many. If we pay attention, the COVID-19 stay at home order has taught numerous lessons for dancers and dance families.
First, dancers have been craving time with their families. Yes, we miss our studios. Yes, we miss the time with our dance families in person. Our studios and dance families provide an environment and relationships that cannot be duplicated. Time with our families at home has taught us once again to put our families first, to build our relationships in our homes, and to choose how we spend our time wisely so that our home relationships can be those built around quality time, love, and trust.
Dancers are also in need of a health adjustment. Long nights at the studio and weekends out of town can lead to less than healthy diets and a lack of sound sleep. For several of us, when life becomes full and stressful, our internal health is the first to go. The quarantine has allowed us to cook and eat dinner with our families, to prepare healthy snacks and consume more water, and give our bodies a chance to sleep until our sleep reserves are satiated.
One more important lesson dancers and dance families can take away from the stay at home time is gratefulness. We have become hyper-aware of our gratefulness to move, to move in coordination with others, to feel the power and connection that only comes from a unified purpose of movement. It’s hard to understand for non-dancers, but dancers and lovers of watching dance know exactly what I’m talking about. There aren’t many places that make your soul sing like when you are moving with your dance family. We are so grateful for the movement and connection that dance provides. Let’s live in that and express our deep appreciation for this beautiful art and what it brings into our lives.
With that, I say thank you to the time at home for bringing us as dancers and dance families back to our roots. We must make our home foundations strong and nurture those relationships so our dance passion has a base to grow from. We must take indescribable care of the facility of our body we have been given by proper nutrition and rest, even when times get stressful. Most importantly, we must remain grateful. Grateful for this intense art form in our lives and all that it brings to us. Let’s say thank you to this massive reset and move forward with a renewed desire to live our best lives, as dancers and people.
