This entry is the bookend to my last, in a way.

If it doesn't take much to be discouraged in dance, it also doesn't take much to be encouraged and inspired. On Wednesday, in the drills section of my flamenco class, I finally managed to get my arms moving with my feet for a while before completely losing it all. Yes, I didn't keep it going all through the drill, but it was such a thrill to find my body parts finally - finally! -- each doing their own thing. There's almost a weird distancing effect: as long as I'm only moving my feet, I feel that *I* am moving my feet. When both feet and arms move, it becomes something outside of myself, because I certainly can't concentrate on both.

Come to think of it, I recognize this pattern from learning other steps or dance moves: you have to focus, focus, focus, and then, at the right moment, just let go. It's just another way in which learning dance is similar to language learning.