Poetry Of Motion

There was a time that I did spend every single week at least two to three hours in a ballet studio. And my whole room was filled up with tunes with a rather classical touch to them. On top of that many things I owned were ballet inspired! During my Senior year my ballet folder, that I got as a first communion gift, got stolen and I was heartbroken. Okay, my historynotes were a big catch just before finals!!

Got my first pink balletshoes with very long ribbons at the age of 6 and closed permantly the door of a ballet studio about 6 years ago. In a way I was forced due to a growing little bump (that turned out to be A! ;-) ) and a back injury. I do have days that I would love to go back out there. After all it is in the middle of a dance floor I do seem to be able to let go everything and at the same time express my inner feelings in the best way ever.

Not that I ever did have the potential to get into a prestigious balletschool of Antwerp. Theoretically I was even too tall as a ballet dancer to get matched up with a male dancer. Of the last category I only got to meet a few. Overall the ballet world is considered a very female world. Most boys who wear ballet slippers and tights seem to have this very 'gay' look all over!

Due to many reasons I visited numerous balletschools. All had their own teaching style and dance instructors. Still, the bottomline was everywhere the same: just dance and feel more alive! This I took very close to my heart. My parents were so nice to add some ballet studio feeling to my room in the form of a mirror and a small ballet barre . But to be honest I could have danced anywhere and anytime! After all a dancer does not need a stage, only a soul!

It still hurts do see other people dancing away! Love the sight but I am aching to be out there with them and move along on the rhtyme and feel so much more alive! Not that I have too much wrinkles to sign up for a dance class. In this specific case it is my back injury that will give me away once I put on my dancing atire.

All the ballet reminders are now hiding out in the back of my wardrobe. I am even holding on to my pink toeshoes and I sometimes get them out and hold them in my hands. They can make me travel back to the time when I was dancing away and able to put my body in some amazing ways. My feet, legs, arms, hands and for sure my face were out there in order to express my inner feelings and show what music could do with me!

So a prima ballerina I never was but I do know that I felt at my best when I was out there on a wooden floor, standing straight, focused, spotting, turning in all directions, stretching my legs and even enjoying (!) the pain when the ballet teacher pushed it a bit further! Loved every second of it! The moment the sweat hit my back back and the first pearl of it was running down my neck I got into a certain trance! Even the hyperventelation that took place in the changingroom after dancing my solo for the annual ballet exame! I once crashed in the changingroom but at the same time I felt the adrenaline running wild!

I refuse to throw away my 'pointes' because after all almost 30 years of dancing are wrapped into them. Honestly, the fact that A is not showing any real interest in ballet I do regret a bit. When he then makes his cool Michael Jackson moves and starts to look at himself in the mirror while doing so I do get a real crack out of it and start to move along!

We will see where it ends? He got signed up for athletics and so I guess that we will be buying some cool trainers very soon and they for sure won't have the color pink! A & ballet I don't think so. At least we already seem to be able to dance together through the kitchen. I am wondering if he would want to sign up for ballroom dancing with his mum? Too much to ask of a 6 year old?

P.S.: Yes, I did own the book 'Tiny goes to ballet' and I hold on for a very long time! The pages even got teared. Basically I was dressed about the same way and I even had the white hairband!

P.S.2: Turns out that exactly today the 60th album of 'Tiny' came out and that the author, Marcel Marlier is blowing out 80 candles on his birthday cake! What a coincidence!!! Uhm, guess that it worthwhile to look for that one particular album when I am back home! ;-)))