Have you ever wanted to learn to dance? I mean REALLY dance..not just some little club beat that you might have picked up watching others. I have always wanted to learn ballroom dancing, both traditional and Latin. When I was in pre-school, I took tap dance and ballet, but after moving to a small town from the big city, my parents were unable to re-enroll me since it was simply not offered until I was much older.

As a child, I would often visit my grandparents, who happened to be very active members of their local VFW Veteran’s of Foreign Wars) post. Every Saturday night, they had a big dance that had a concession stand. I  would often help my grandmother in the concession stand while she was on duty with her Ladies’ Auxillary unit. Later, I would sit at our table we had reserved, reading books or playing with toys while my grandparents “danced the night away.” They were so good at it…along with all the other couples there. It wasn’t just older couples there, but younger ones too. They played everything from country slow songs to rock songs to genuine waltzes. I was always quite embarassed to dance because I was so shy, but my grandmother would make me get out there with my granddad when she was too tired due to her arthritis. Now, I am glad she did because until recently, I did not know that I actually had learned how to waltz.

To be honest, I had forgotten about it. I asked my mom about some catchy tune that was stuck in my head, and she said it was a waltz from an old movie. I asked her later if she knew how to waltz, and she said no..but that her father had when he was alive. She told me something about how it goes 1-2-3. It dawned on me, I DO know this..and slowly, I remembered all of those Saturday nights as a child, dancing around that big room with my grandfather at their local VFW; which included, all the times I stepped on his toes, and he never said a word about it. I also found out that one of his favorite songs was a waltz, so maybe I get my love of classical music honest. I have also always wanted to learn the other ballroom dances, including the Latin steps. I think it all looks so beautiful, refined and elegant, but it will have to wait until I am able to afford some sort of lessons at a later period in time.

A few years ago, I used to go dancing at local clubs a lot. As I became serious about my college studies, clubbing had to be side-lined, and will probably stay there for a bit longer as well. But I do miss some of those fun-filled nights. I was often surprised at the number of compliments I would get from friends and strangers on how well I danced or picked up new steps. And although I have confidence issues in my looks and relationships, I have never lacked for a dance partner at any club. That is really funny though because I feel more comfortable dancing in front of a bunch of strangers, than around a bunch of people that I DO know. At middle/high school dances, I was just a wallflower, sitting back, watching everyone else. To those who saw me later, they were very much surprised to learn that I had any sort of dance rhythm at all.

When I hear music with a beat, it makes me want to just get up and move to it. I tend to work out with certain tv shows on FitTV, but have discovered a show called Shimmy. It actually teaches belly dancing..so I think that until I can afford those much wanted ballroom dance lessons, it is time to try to learn a new dance brought to me courtesy of my FIOS network. Not only does dancing a GREAT form of exercise, it brings a joy to my life that I seem to be missing. When I was attending the local Arts & Jazz Festival this past weekend, I heard some Hispanic music playing that just made me want to do some basic mambo moves…or even a little merengue. Hmm..now to just find myself a dance partner…