Dance to Be Happy
Everyone has a hobby. Whether it be a team sport, an individual sport, a club, or even just an interest, most of us have a passion for something. My passion is Irish dance. I love to dance and I love the people I dance with, but Irish dance is a difficult sport. I requires taking classes five days a week and practicing on the days that I do not have class, and my classes I learn much more than just how to dance. I learn many lessons that apply to my life both inside and outside of the Irish dance world. The pictures above show what I spend most of my time outside of school doing, along with the amazing friendships that I have made through dance.
Dance has taught me self-discipline. My classes start at 7 o’clock at night and I get home around 11 o’clock, and there are days when the last thing I want to do is go to dance class, but I know that I have to buckle down and make myself go in order to get the results that I want. This self-discipline is also reflected in my school work and my job. Sometimes I do not want to do homework or go to work, but I have goals and I know that in order to accomplish my goals I must do my homework, study for that test, or show up to work even though I really do not want to. My long hours spent dancing have also taught me good time management, because in order for me to be successful in both dance and school I have to plan my assignments and study time wisely and in combination with the time I spend dancing. Dance has also taught me not to take things personally. At class when you do not understand something and you ask for something to be explained my teacher says, “does it sound like I am speaking Chinese?” So I have learned not to ask questions, and rather be independent and responsible. Also, Irish dance is a subjective sport. At competitions I wear a wig, a fancy dress with lots of crystals, and tanner on my legs, just to look good to the judges. Some judges do not like dancers because they have blonde hair or others may not like dancers who have blue dresses, so they take points off of their score. There are many things that I can not control in Irish dance, including what biases judges have, so I have learned that not all things are in my control and therefore I should not take everything to heart. I have learned to take criticism. Everytime I go to dance class, I am going to be told by my teach what I am not good enough at and what I need to do better in order to do well at competitions, and at first it was not easy to be told that there are so many other girls who can turn their feet out better than me or that if I simply put in the effort to kick my legs higher than I could get better results. My teacher does not mince words either. There are times when she yells at me so loud I think I am going to burst an eardrum and times where she has pushed me so hard I am not sure why I do what I do, but I have realized that she does it because she loves me. My teacher knows that I want to win competitions, and she knows that there is no easy way to get there, and the best feeling is when I do win and I am able to create happiness for both myself and her. Finally, I have learned the importance of friendship. I have known my friend from dance for ten years and they know me better than I know myself sometimes. It is important to remember the fine line between friends and competitors, because even though on competition day it is all business, I would not be where I am today without the amazing friends that I have in my life.
Despite all the difficulties of Irish dance, I would not be the person I am today without it. I have learned many valuable lessons that pertain to my everyday life, and they have made me a better person. Irish dance is my passion and I could not imagine doing anything else and when I dance I am able to create my own happiness. Rather than searching for a sport that has a coach that only gives me praise, has good practice times, and is always fair, just so I can pursue happiness. I create happiness with my passion and I could not ask for anything else.