A few nights ago I attended a Dance Gathering. A Dance Gathering is exactly what it sounds like: the coming together of persons for the sole purpose of dancing. The outcome is often a form of Ecstatic dance, which is also known as trance dance, “a unique spiritual experience with roots in Shamanism.”
It’s blissful.
My love of dance goes back a long way. When I was a very young girl my mother gave me a book called A Very Young Dancer. It was about a ten-year-old student at the School of American Ballet in New York preparing for her role in the ballet “The Nutcracker.”
I had dreams of being that girl. I even called up the Ontario School of Ballet one day and inquired about auditions. I never pursued the dream. Somehow I knew I’d never make it as a dancer. Or I was too scared to try.
Today social dancing is probably my most favourite thing in the world to do. I love it to pieces. I have a gal pal who also loves to get down and boogie and we were talking recently about the dearth of opportunities in this city to social dance in a sober environment. Dancing in bars is fine but it’s a last resort for the non-drinker.
So she and I were brainstorming ideas and we ended up discussing the possibility of renting a space, advertising the event and inviting anyone and everyone who wished to come. The iMac would be the DJ and we’d just get down.
Exactly three weeks to the day, such an evening took place. Only she and I had nothing to do with it.
I had seen a notice on a community listserv for an upcoming Dance Gathering and immediately forwarded it to my friend with the simple message “Ask and we shall receive.”
We both showed up and danced our hearts out. It was ecstatic dancing at its best. A roomful of people shaking the booty and feeling the love.
My friend had come in late and so it was only after it was all over that we hugged and began to laugh together. It was no joke: we knew we had manifested this night.
Inspiring Message of the Day: Sometimes when you desire something with enough passion and commitment the Universe will move mountains to make it happen.
