Reader here! Don’t worry – I haven’t gone anywhere. I’ve just been busy covering the agriculture desk for our sister station, so I’ve been a bit busy.
But, I wanted to stop in and say hello, and talk about something that I’ve always thought is pretty cool.
Dance.
Now, I’m not going to sit here and claim that I’m a great dancer. I’m passable. I can do a basic two-step or a waltz, but I’m no Fred Astaire.
When did I become aware of how cool dance could be? Like most kids of my generation, it probably had to do with the “King of Pop,” Michael Jackson.
I was a kid when “Thriller” hit, and the videos for the title track ad “Beat It” were HUGE. Later videos like “Smooth Criminal,” “Bad” and “Remember the Time” are just some of the killer videos that MJ made over the years, that showcased his individual dancing talents, as well as some incredible group choreography.
But “Thriller?” Come on… a great tune, awesome dancing, and ZOMBIES?!?! I was sold.
I have the video cassette of “Making Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’,” and I don’t know how many times I watched that video, doing my own amateur version of the dance along with Michael and his undead partners!
But over the years, we learned a bit of dancing in school.
For example, I can’t hear “Bop” by Dan Seals, without breaking into the relatively easy line dance we learned in about Grade Six or Seven. Gym class at the time was kind of like this…
Then, in high school, we learned more of the two-person dances, like two-steps, waltzes and the fox-trot. The added bonus? Getting to dance with the girls! Trying to avoid getting sweaty palms and tripping over your own feet (or theirs) was always a challenge!
I’ve always been amazed by people that aren’t born dancers, who are able to pick up dancing and take to it like a fish in water.
Like one of my favourite race car drivers, Canada’s James Hinchcliffe. After nearly dying in a crash during qualifying for the 2015 Indianapolis 500, he decided to try some new things that previously wouldn’t have been on his radar. So he went on “Dancing with the Stars.”
And he turned out to be pretty fantastic!
He and his partner Sharna Burgess ended up finishing second (they was robbed, I tells ya!) But it was really cool seeing Hinch put in the work and push himself into new territory.
So I’m rambling, but this has been a roundabout way to get to the real point. Over the weekend, three of my nieces took part in the Summit Dance Challenge in Regina.
My 16-year-old niece Abbie and her fellow dancers from Trilogy Academy of Dance & Baton Twirling in Saskatoon took part, as did my two youngest nieces from Balgonie, 12-year-old Ella and Drew, who is almost nine years old. They’re both students at the Martin School of Dance & Baton in Regina.
And they all did awesome!
It’s fantastic seeing these kids, who sometimes can be a bit shy and nervous, blossom and come alive on stage, showing this whole new side to their personalities. It makes me so proud to see them show off their talents, and I love seeing them do something they love so much. Seeing my family happy is the single biggest thing that makes me happy.
There’s a saying I’ve always liked… “Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass… it’s about learning how to dance in the rain.”
Storms come and go, but we can dance forever. Embrace the dance!
Let’s wrap this up with a little vintage Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Such style and sophistication. Enjoy!
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