Swing

I'm feeling good.  You know how love feels in those early days?  The first flush, where everything is new and fascinating and the best thing ever?  And you know how sometimes that fades, but things are still good?  And how sometimes it fades completely and the love is suddenly just gone?  This happened to me with swing dance.  I started doing swing 7 years ago, and it consumed every ounce of me.  All I wanted to do was dance.  I couldn't wait for Friday nights at Fairbanks, the first jazz club I ever danced in.  Meeting new people, sharing the moments and the music.  It set me on fire.  Then I settled into it, and calmed down, and worked and got good at it.  And then, slowly, that love faded and swing became a burden to me.  I got too good to dance with the fun dancers anymore, and instead danced with the super amazing dancers, who were all too interested in being super amazing dancers.  I felt judged.  I got bored.  Haven't danced in almost 2 years.

Until last night!  Went to Amsterdam to a swing dance even there, and it was like Fairbanks all over again (actually, it even sort of looked like Fairbanks...)  New people who were good, but didn't yet realize how good they could be, so they were just there to dance and have fun.  I didn't sit out a single song!  Can't remember the last time I went to a dance and danced every song!  So many interesting people, so many amazing dances, so many promising leads.  :-)  What a great night!

I'm going back for more tomorrow, too!  :-D