Dance Therapy

The last two weekends I went dancing again.

First, I went back to that really nerdy ballroom, to see if I was just remembering it badly.

I wasn't. It was worse. But that's okay. To each their own.

Then last night I went back to the Friday night thing where I had so much fun before. I realized that there are at least two kinds of nerds: There are funny, social, very smart nerds with bad ideas for hair, and there are stiff, humorless, socially difficult nerds. Last night I was with the funny, social ones. With plenty of examples of bad hair.

It's good to know the difference, because otherwise I'd miss out on some great dancing. For example, late in the evening, one tall gangly nerd came along and asked me to waltz. He should have asked me if I would like to go flying blind. He whirled me all over the floor so fast that there was nothing to do but absolutely focus on him and watch and feel for hands to show me where to go. It was just amazing and I did stuff I didn't know I could. But it was like hanging on by your fingernails. A thrill ride, and I was rather severely dizzy afterward!

Another good reason to know the fun nerds is that they know good music. This venue has, hands down, the best, most fun, most beautiful, most emotionally satisfying music I've ever heard in any dancing setting. You end up waltzing to rock and roll and all kinds of funky stuff, having a grand time of it.

My favorite partner from last time, David, was back. We ended up dancing half the night together, talking, singing along to the music (most of which is so melodic that if you can't find words to sing, you'll make them up!) and trying new stuff. While it's still good to mix it up with other partners and learn that way, which we did, there was something really nice about having a partner to come back to who was more personal. And because he's a Christian, when the DJ's played an Irish tune which was pretty much the same as a beautiful hymn I love, I sang it while we danced and enjoyed the words:

I heard the voice of Jesus say
Come unto Me and rest
Lay down, thou weary one, lay down
Your head upon My breast
I came to Jesus as I was:
Weary, worn and sad
I found in Him a resting place
And He has made me glad

That's what last night was all about. I've been emotionally tired with all the issues I am ploughing up, not feeling very interested in what I'm doing from day to day, and basically just moderately bored again, while making the best of it in various positive ways. But in this setting where I'm both challenged to dance well and having a relaxed social time, more of my stops were being pulled out and I was feeling more myself. Dancing like this is restorative of one's womanhood or manhood. It was a resting place in which to be made glad again.

As the evening went on and David and I said our goodbyes once again without exchanging any phone numbers or trying to take it anywhere else, I recognized that I was being given a gift by God - a person with whom I could be myself in a particular setting, where I could rebuild my trust and confidence after taking a lot of beatings out there in life, and not have to offer the man anything more than just being present. No expectations. And it's a gift I am giving back to David, which I know he appreciates.

I feel very blessed - thankful for the little ways in which God is restoring my soul.