Dance Like No One's Watching

Interestingly, I was having a chat with one of my former students, who is a bit of a philosopher and we both agreed that there are life’s lessons in dance.

Let me tell you more. I was in Bangkok on a work trip and met up with an old buddy of mine, Adrian (Adie), the man behind this awesome online travel site http://www.thailandhop.com/ and its domestic site: http://www.earthhop.co.th/

Adie, being a hospitable Briton living in Thailand, invites me over for a barbeque, something which we used to do when we were colleagues back at our APEC CEO production gig back in 2003. I love cooking; it’s therapeutic and extremely relaxing. All the housekeepers out there must be cringing now but seriously, cooking is fun and ever since my dad taught me how to cook, I’d been hooked.

In between running back and forth from the kitchen to the barbeque pit I was having a blast playing with Adie’s little girl, Emily. She’s so adorable and smart as a wick. One can tell how intelligent she is in the manner which she lifts her eyebrow or tilts her head when you try talking baby-speak with her.

“Give me sentences with correct syntax, structure and meaning or I’ll spit at you” she seemed to respond while looking at adults make complete fools of themselves. Well, she is a wonderful kid and I am not saying that because she’s my friend’s baby.

So, Emily starts walking around the house looking all important and Moo, Adie's wife puts on some pop music by Tata Young and suddenly, on cue, this little giggly 18-month old dancing diva starts shaking her hips and bobbing her head. I must point out that she’s not cracking any pirouettes or front batman kicks but, she’d sure be in line for my Tuesday evening's soft and sexy lyrical class. Emily is awesome.

Does this scene sound familiar? Struck a chord somewhere? Remember the Ally McBeal's Dancing Baby in the late 90s? That's the image that I was trying to illustrate.

Infants/ Toddlers are by nature fascinated with music. And what’s the first action they start doing once they can stand on their own?

DANCE!!!

You don’t see them spouting off complicated algorithms or debate ethics, when they start babbling their first sounds. You don’t see them sketching airplanes or skyscrapers when they’re able to wiggle their fingers.

You don’t see them rifling through the financial section of the morning paper when they can see clearly. Babies are not predisposed to be bankers, politicians, economists, rocket scientists or architects.

They are born to dance, just as we are.

The next time, you think that you may have two left feet, think again. Look back to the times when you swayed to the music that caught the rhythm of your soul.

Adie later turned to me and asked, “Bill, do you think she’s too young to start taking dance or creative movement classes”?

"Never too young and never to old to start learning", was my response. Which is the same reply I give to people when they ask me whether they’re too old to start or continue dancing.

Dance on!