DancingI have been dancing with my father since I could walk. He taught me how to jitterbug (a form of swing dancing in the South), two-step, and waltz when I was very young and I have always enjoyed dancing with him. His enthusiasm for dance has certainly fueled my own and in high school I took classes at the community center in a wide variety of dancing styles including modern ballet, period style colonial dance (such as polkas, landlers, and waltzes), Irish step, and even a cultural sampler which explored Native American forms of dance, belly-dancing, and Chinese fan dancing.
However, nothing has compared with the enthusiasm I have developed for swing. Alongside friends I went to an open dance at the Century Ballroom in Seattle and fell in love. I registered for classes at Century and now, in my last quarter, am taking swing dancing at the University as a fun way to end my time. I anxiously await having the time, free from homework, to take more classes and go out dancing more often. In anticipation (and as an early graduation present) I even bought myself a pair of dancing shoes made for swing dancing, with a suede sole ideal for spinning. I have already made plans to go out dancing my first night as a college graduate and with my father when I come to visit him next. |
Image: A chalk drawing I drew with the Friendship is Magic club on campus.