Dance - Catherine Gaines

    If eyes are windows to the soul then surely dance is a window to the heart. A way of acknowledging and expressing pent up emotions, and healing from it. During the past year, I have found myself turning to dance more and more as a way of pouring out my emotions and coping with less than ideal situations. Dance is home, it's comforting, but it's difficult, and I love that about it.

    The challenge distracts from emotional hurt, every thought is towards perfecting the movements, the expressions, and moving to the rhythm. The music is healing, but so is the time alone. Pondering, working both the inside of my mind and my muscles. 

    Dance isn't a mindless sport. It's full of thinking, planning, and anticipating. It takes time, and practice. It's impossible to improve without working on it.

                                                     

    During the first few months of quarantine, I took a lot of time to reflect on myself, and on ways I could improve both my physical and mental health. Having one constant in my life helped to ground me, and I think it's important for everyone to have a physical outlet to vent in a healthy way. 

    Before quarantine, I never took the time to work on my mental health. And now I realize that it needs to be worked on just as much as physical health, and together they support one another. Creating strength that before, was unknown to me. 

    Negative thoughts can't be fixed overnight, in fact, it may never be, "fixed" but they can be improved, and any step in the right direction no matter how small, is a success. The same is true for everything. Time, practice, and patience, can get you further than you ever imagined. In all aspects of life. 

    It's hard to realize how far you've come when you're only seeing the small daily changes. So give yourself some credit. It's been a tough year, and making it this far is enough.