My car was in the shop (again) and they promised it would be ready by Saturday am, so I had a plan. As I was checking email, I got one from Jeanne asking if we were all still coming, as it was almost forty below. I was in…somehow I KNEW I was going, it did not occur to me to NOT go. So I woke Steve up to give me a ride to get the car and none of our trucks would crank. Without hesitation Steve ran over to the neighbors and borrowed their truck and off we went. I grabbed my car and zipped over to Park Rapids.

There we were…five women of northern Minnesota. Five women dressed in our layers of clothing…braving the bitter cold, five women ready to open up our souls, our hearts, our very selves to whatever the Universe would be bringing.

After a brief settling in, Jeanne gave us our instructions and the dance began. We each covered our eyes with a bandanna and began to dance. Oh, I will say, the room was padded and we were safe, plus Jeanne was watching to keep us from taking the room part with our wild dances.

The music was a masterful blend of my personal fave (80s technopop/dance music), and various cultural beats and rhythms; Celtic, African, Spanish, Australian Aboriginal, so many I cannot remember. It all blended together in a beautiful mix of visceral rhythms. We danced wildly for an hour without stopping. of course, I was nervous at the beginning…would I pass out? Would I feel stupid? Would I knock someone over? All of that disappeared as the music began. I truly lost myself in feeling my own body move.

When the dance ended, I mourned a bit. I wanted to dance like that forever and never, never stop! My soul wanted to twirl and stomp and I wanted to shake my bootay (spelling on purpose) more, more, more. When it was over I realized I had never danced like that sober…yes, I admit, I was a bit of a party girl in the 80s and danced many, many nights and early mornings away. I loved it. Upon reflection, it seems as if our society has pushed dance into clubs and bars and made it socially acceptable only under the influence of alcohol. Sad, isn’t it? For millions of years we have danced around campfires and under moonlit skies and now…not. Children dance because it feels good, the music moves them and they dance beautiful kid dances. How many cute YouTube videos have you seen with a kid dancing and enjoying that moment?

When did enjoying the feelings of our bodies moving become relegated to sporting events or clubs?

Tomorrow, more on the Mask Making part of the event!