The Healing Force
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It is already within you
I attended my first in-person African Brazilian dance class in over two years. The musicians played the djembe, dundun, and surdo, African drums. As I took in the music and allowed it to permeate throughout my body, my soul began to heal. Like the sunshine fading Into brilliant colors, begging to shine just a while longer, I began to relax. I danced as if I were a musical note in polyrhythmic syncopation, spinning like a planet gravitating toward orbital alignment. My world was turned right side up.
I spent many of my early adult years learning the art of socializing, from conversations about world events and emotional intelligence to forms of artistic expressions. I was aware of my spatial depth and how to use it to draw people in, guide them away or grant or deny them access to my energy. I rarely remember an awkward social moment that I could not navigate. What took me years to perfect was undone during the pandemic. With one afternoon of African dance and music, I found the path that would lead me back to my peaceful world within myself and, therefore, the world.
The drummers continued playing after class. The other dancers returned to their waiting water bottles, towels, and draw clothes, but I continued dancing. It was my life support, and I needed more to sustain myself until the next class. Later in the day, I realized that the rhythm and movement were already within me, ready to reconnect to the outside world and my joy.
If the pandemic, fear, or other life circumstances has separated you from positive passions, seek them out, reconnect, and don’t let go.
