No 41. Changing Lives through Dancing
By David Earl Woodbury
Friday, October 9, 2015
Something to Be Enthusiastic About!
We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us really happy is something to be enthusiastic about. – Charles Kingsley (1819 – 1875) English Novelist and Clergyman
Most people will tell you that they just want to be happy in their lives. As Arthur Murray dancers, we love to be happy while teaching dance, learning dance, and performing dances. Dancing makes us feel good and we are blessed to uplift others through music and movement.
Sometimes, I run into someone who wants comfort and luxury at the main ingredients in their lives to make them feel good daily. They want that special Starbucks caramel macchiato, their perfect car, the stylish clothes and all the accessories worn over the perfect body. They are one of the beautiful people. Yet, are they happy?
Who do I find that is happy around me? It is the person and the people who have dreams and they are motivated by helping others achieve their dreams and goals in their lives. They are not frustrated (OK, sometimes, but usually while they are organizing a fundraiser!) they are not sad, they are not depressed. They don’t have time for such luxuries.
It’s funny that the people who give in life consider being in a bad mood and being unmotivated a “luxury” that they cannot afford. Amazing how that works! I am surrounded by event organizers, people who support the arts, volunteers for events that raise money from cancer to helping kids. They are always on a mission to make the next event work so that they can help someone else. These are amazing people.
As I sit in organizational meetings for fundraiser and events, I feel the camaraderie that all the attendees have to be their best and deliver their best performance as volunteers. You leave one of these meetings feeling motivated, full of the ‘can do’ attitude, and your to do list is full of great things to do and experience.
All big things in this world are done by people who are naive and
have an idea that is obviously impossible.
— Dr. Frank Richards (1875-1961) English Writer
I do believe that I can accomplish my goals. This is the same feeling as walking on the dance floor to perform a dance presentation. Your tummy turns on you before you go on the floor and you have a moment where you can’t breathe. Your mouth is dry. Your hands and body sweat. You and your partner are both feeling adrenalin going through you a million miles an hour.
Boom, you take the floor. Everyone is cheering for you. Then, the glorious music begins. Your muscle memory takes over and then you begin to move to the music together. You feel the wonderful energy of the audience and suddenly you are not dancing, but creating magic! You hear cheering and clapping and suddenly it’s over. You’re done. You leave the floor to a thunderous applause and you hug each other. You made it and you did it.
If you’re not enthusiastic or happy, I’ll share with you what my mom, J. Clair, would always say: “Keep a little song in your heart.” I try to do this every day. Sometimes I have to make sure it is a happy song and not a funeral dirge, but I do my best to keep humming along and singing in my heart a song of joy and praise. Out sing the blues. Drown out their tunes with your happy songs and find something to be enthusiastic about in your life.
Keep on Dancing!
David Woodbury