Life reflects itself through the things you do, the people you meet as well as in your passions and perseverances, in so many intriguing yet enthralling ways.
One such beautiful reflection I experienced in my travels earlier in France.
A sense of deja vu, a throwback to the fond memories of teaching dances to people in the different places, all thanks to the Dance & the magic of movements.
While visiting France I met my colleague from the world of dance, Celine Maheo who resides in Rennes Celine is a practicing clinical psychologist and an Argentine tango dancer. What’s beautiful is that she is a dedicated professional who uses the dance therapy for helping Parkinson’s patients with their movements through Tango dance sessions.
My interest was piqued, as earlier I had been conducting very similar dance sessions as well, especially remembered our Seniors Dance for Wellness workshops back in India.
So over a beautiful meet and greet sipping cups of hot herbal tea at the Les Grands Gamin at the heart of Rennes, ensued a free flowing conversation where we exchanged notes on each others life. Our passion for dancing was the visible to see as we hardly knew how moments passed by.
To dance is to sense connections beyond the dancing bodies.
To dance is to honour life and its unique expressions in the movements.
Savvy Raj
And when Celine invited me to her next Tango Therapy Workshop, it was an offer I could not refuse. I was actually keen to understand whether and how the cultural differences change the way of conducting and experiencing workshops here.
Dancing can improve the mobility and balance in senior adults. Adapting the dance to suit the requirements of the group, like simplifying the steps, the placement of the feet, improves their coordination, mobility and balance.
The dance session was deeply engrossing & truly inspiring to witness and participate as well. The music played that day stayed with me well after the session.
So the next step turned out to be me conducting a Chacha session for them. The challenges of language barriers were surrmounted easily as Celine offered to translate my teaching from English to French.
Everything fell in place beautifully and voila time flew again.We danced a bit of Chacha that day and also some more in the next few sessions as well. I was told later by the learners how much they enjoyed it!
It was an amazing experience sharing the joys of movements and I thank Celine for her inclusivity in requesting me to conduct the dance sessions as well. And I deeply appreciate all her beautiful learners that I met,connected and danced with. It was a truly warm and wonderful time spent with them all.
After the sessions we would gather together and discuss opening many facets of the learning and imbibing. It was a beautiful way of empathising and understanding each other.
Some of the beautiful souls I got to interact with in the few months I was there.
Dance has a way of soothing your entire being and bringing forth and connecting you with the depth of who you are. That is when dance begins to feel meaningful and transforms life. The dance connects established, in those sessions is a beautiful memory etched in my heart, that I will cherish forever.
I chanced on these beautiful moments again as I found the photos I clicked back then and I decided to give them a little artistic effect.
All across the world April 29th every year is celebrated as International Dance Day, although every day is a great day to dance!
I dedicate this post to all my dance friends and colleagues and all the dance educators in the world who are making the world a better place, with every step in time.
‘Keep me away from the wisdom which does not cry, the philosophy which does not laugh and the greatness which does not bow before children‘ Kahlil Gibran
A life well lived
Includes experiences
That makes us who we are.
We are not set in stone
Or cast in iron that cannot mould
Our emotional being cannot be suppressed
We are life living breathing and exploring possibilities.
Our infinite ways of expressions is unique to our being
Keep the Spring in your heart Then no Winters are too harsh Or Summers too hot to handle As Seasons change around you You sense it all from the hope of your heart. And hope springs forth eternally…
Our expectations are our internal picture of what we anticipate will happen in future. When our expectations are met we are happy but when not, they set us up for disappointments.
Setting the expectations and giving clarity can be effective in a professional environment. Yet when we do not communicate it or when we set unrealistic expectations it can lead to anxiety frustration & loss of trust.
A few traits to develop that help in handling our expectations better.
Communication : Acing our internal and external communication establishes an understanding of the expectations.
Adaptability : An art of change management. In being adaptable to a new and different reality we learn to manage our expectations.
Kindness & compassion : Both help us hone our attitudes. The way we feel and emote during a challenging moment helps us manage and alter the situation.
Patience : A virtue that helps us to not be too exacting on ourselves and others.
Equanimity : Being non judgmental helps in being less edgy and more balanced in our expectations.
After all…
Less you expect Less you worry Less you stress More is the faith More the love More life
To all my caring, giving nurturing friends the lightworkers , the mentors and spiritual guiders, the motivators and healers on their special journey stepping in tandem with their calling!
A little bit of freetime and a mobile phone art app in your hand can make the moments come alive…
I started to paint the screen with all my favorite colors… but then somehow somewhere in between I sensed a face pop and I continued to sketch away at leisure and found a face staring righton .
Now the face was somewhat serious and I just could not gel with that, as the moment was anything but that, so I just had to play with my fingers on the screen just a bit and lo and behold that face was more appealing to me now.
It’s a work in progress…Yes I could have gone on refining this piece,there is a lot of room for it, but somewhere I just stopped adding more to it ,perhaps I might pick it up in posterity and paint some more.
P.s Must mention I used no stylus, just my fingers for this one. I thoroughly enjoyed creating this piece of art.
The Antwerpen Christmas Market is spread out over several streets and squares lighting up the entire historical centre of Antwerp beautifully into a huge and happening zone to stroll around in…
Glowing in the night! Beating the winters chill Sitting by warm fire pits… Sipping hot glühwein!
And the mistletoe? Well its no small branch But a giant one indeed! Fit for all the crowd that gather under Just to share their love for each other….💞
In deepest turmoil Choose the power of Gratitude For in its positive intentions And glory of goodwill Life turns harmonious Every things aligns perfectly And music resounds its magical melodies All is well once again
Gratitude is gratefulness In acceptance & acknowledgement Of the grace in goodness Bestowed upon us No storm is too strong in its wake Glory to the Gladiator of Hearts The chaperone of connectedness That seeks to invoke the strength In these interconnects in life & living For no man is too strong As much as all of us together I bow to the grace of Gratitude!