They say the best time to start Ballet is very young. Then again, they say that about mostly any kind of art. For some reason, the only kind of art people don't get shocked when you tell them you have started as an adult is painting! There's something about painting that makes it accessible for people of all ages. On the other hand, dancing is not one of them.
I used to think like that. I have always loved dancing and from a very young age dreamed of becoming a dancer myself. However, at that young age, I was forced to go through one of the hardest "moves" of my life---we moved to the U.S. from Iran when I was only 10 years old. When you go through something as difficult as immigration at such a young age, you become paralyzed from speech for a while. In fact, I, like many other children, went through a long 6-10 month "silent period" and could not speak! In the midst of all this acculturation, I forgot all about my passions and just focused on trying to find friends in a school where I couldn't speak the same language as everyone else! (I was in 5th grade back then.)
I did try Gymnastics when I was 7. I mostly tried it because my dad loved it and since it was too late for him, he decided to let me have a go at it. Turned out, I loved it. I felt like I wasn't very good at it, because most of the moves just didn't come naturally to me (which makes sense because there's nothing in Gymnastics that is "natural") but I loved it. However, even those classes didn't last long because I remember I only attended it for 2 or 3 terms. My mother was a firm believer that school is the most important thing so I only attended Gymnastics during the summer and concentrated on my school studies during the year...no wonder I wasn't so "good" in those moves in Gymnastics. In any case, three years later, we moved to the U.S. and everything else ensued.
I didn't have a particularly difficult life growing up, except that I was a particularly rebellious daughter and wasn't a very good "rule-follower"; in fact, I rebelled against these rules every opportunity I got, especially as a teenager! This is what made things difficult both for myself and my parents. Now you have to understand, my parents were very conservative and thought to raise their kids that way and I was a dreamer growing up in New York, and a bit boy-crazed.
In any case, years later, as an adult, when I came to and remembered my love for dancing, I realized I missed it. I missed my opportunity to take ballet when I was very young and now I can never do it again. However, I was drawn to it regardless. Any opportunity I got to take a ballet session here or there, I went for it, even if it were classes that resembled ballet or dancing in any way. In fact, as of last year, I started taking a form of dance classes that I believe it even surpasses my love for Ballet, it's called "Divine Dance" which is a combination of Ballet, Flamenco, and Persian. For the past year, I have taken this form of dance and though I still feel very awkward doing most of the moves, but it's like I haven't ever felt so alive! However, that was September 2015 until June 2016 and now I am not living in Berkeley anymore where my favorite teacher resides.
Skip to today: as a 28-year old, married woman I am living in Los Angeles with my husband (with my parents far away in New York, for some reason that seems like an important fact) and I have my life in my own hands. I am not particularly so rich as to take on a private ballet instructor and practice the art 10 hours a day. In fact, though I love dancing still, it is not my only passion in life. So, once again, an opportunity has presented itself and I have taken it. It is a Ballet 1 class at a local community college, and I am going for it!
We had our first session yesterday, and I can already tell that it is going to be something I will really come to love. Our instructor is a retired professional dancer with an energy that most teachers don't even try to engage. She has instructed us to buy a "uniform" and wear it to class everyday: black leotards, black tight dance shorts, and black, beige, or pink ballet shoes. If I die later on this year, I will be glad I took this class as an experience on this earth!
I used to think like that. I have always loved dancing and from a very young age dreamed of becoming a dancer myself. However, at that young age, I was forced to go through one of the hardest "moves" of my life---we moved to the U.S. from Iran when I was only 10 years old. When you go through something as difficult as immigration at such a young age, you become paralyzed from speech for a while. In fact, I, like many other children, went through a long 6-10 month "silent period" and could not speak! In the midst of all this acculturation, I forgot all about my passions and just focused on trying to find friends in a school where I couldn't speak the same language as everyone else! (I was in 5th grade back then.)
I did try Gymnastics when I was 7. I mostly tried it because my dad loved it and since it was too late for him, he decided to let me have a go at it. Turned out, I loved it. I felt like I wasn't very good at it, because most of the moves just didn't come naturally to me (which makes sense because there's nothing in Gymnastics that is "natural") but I loved it. However, even those classes didn't last long because I remember I only attended it for 2 or 3 terms. My mother was a firm believer that school is the most important thing so I only attended Gymnastics during the summer and concentrated on my school studies during the year...no wonder I wasn't so "good" in those moves in Gymnastics. In any case, three years later, we moved to the U.S. and everything else ensued.
I didn't have a particularly difficult life growing up, except that I was a particularly rebellious daughter and wasn't a very good "rule-follower"; in fact, I rebelled against these rules every opportunity I got, especially as a teenager! This is what made things difficult both for myself and my parents. Now you have to understand, my parents were very conservative and thought to raise their kids that way and I was a dreamer growing up in New York, and a bit boy-crazed.
In any case, years later, as an adult, when I came to and remembered my love for dancing, I realized I missed it. I missed my opportunity to take ballet when I was very young and now I can never do it again. However, I was drawn to it regardless. Any opportunity I got to take a ballet session here or there, I went for it, even if it were classes that resembled ballet or dancing in any way. In fact, as of last year, I started taking a form of dance classes that I believe it even surpasses my love for Ballet, it's called "Divine Dance" which is a combination of Ballet, Flamenco, and Persian. For the past year, I have taken this form of dance and though I still feel very awkward doing most of the moves, but it's like I haven't ever felt so alive! However, that was September 2015 until June 2016 and now I am not living in Berkeley anymore where my favorite teacher resides.
Skip to today: as a 28-year old, married woman I am living in Los Angeles with my husband (with my parents far away in New York, for some reason that seems like an important fact) and I have my life in my own hands. I am not particularly so rich as to take on a private ballet instructor and practice the art 10 hours a day. In fact, though I love dancing still, it is not my only passion in life. So, once again, an opportunity has presented itself and I have taken it. It is a Ballet 1 class at a local community college, and I am going for it!
We had our first session yesterday, and I can already tell that it is going to be something I will really come to love. Our instructor is a retired professional dancer with an energy that most teachers don't even try to engage. She has instructed us to buy a "uniform" and wear it to class everyday: black leotards, black tight dance shorts, and black, beige, or pink ballet shoes. If I die later on this year, I will be glad I took this class as an experience on this earth!
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