Dance has been a passion of mine since I was nine years old. I started out in hip-hop and ballet fusion classes, and I’ve expanded to taking classes in different styles such as modern, jazz, contemporary, and ballroom. It’s been twelve years since I began dancing, and even though I’m not actively taking a class right now, I love to dance in my basement for exercise and for fun.
I’ve never been able to perform crazy tricks or do advanced dance moves. I can’t kick my leg up more than a 90 degree angle, keep my legs completely straight while leaping, and even touch my toes without bending my knees if I’m sitting with my legs straight out. From watching videos of some of my friends dancing, I had a bad habit of comparing my abilities to theirs.
However, now, I’ve realized that anyone can be a dancer, regardless of flexibility and ability. As long as you have a passion for something, you don’t have to be amazing at it to love it. Some of my friends who love dance are competitive dancers who train every day. However, that’s not always the case. I’m a recreational dancer who only spent three years at a studio. Two were during the height of Covid, so they weren’t even regular seasons.
Yes, I can still work on my flexibility, and I admit I could’ve done extra to gain more flexibility. With flexibility comes more ability to try new dance moves that I wouldn’t be able to do before…potentially. However, people’s bodies work differently. Sometimes, stretching is hard and feels painful if you go past your limits, and that’s okay! I’ve learned to give myself grace.
Even though I still want to work on my flexibility (probably with more stretching over time), it’s not at the forefront of my mind when I’m dancing anymore. When I’m dancing, I’m lost in the moment. I’m enjoying the music moving through me as I’m moving.