The first couple of weeks of this Covid-19 situation I was very busy and I think that kept me distracted from my feelings.
But, last week, my feelings caught up to me and just were not gonna let me get away without feeling them. It was overwhelming, honestly.
I’m reaching for my oldest and best tool to help me through: DANCE.
I certainly have to give my self time and space to feel all my feelings – and then plenty of time dance!
I grew up dancing constantly – I did it in class and for fun in my free time. And although it was my passion and what I wanted to do “when I grew up,” in my adult life I have realized it did so much more for me.
Dance and movement got me out of my head and in the present moment like nothing else could. From the time I was 7 until I was 12 I had a few phobias, the main one being a disproportionate fear of bad weather.
In my little mind, rain could equal thunderstorms which could then equal death of my parents. It was pretty nuts and at its worse, I’d be checking the weather phone (anyone remember that?!) repeatedly to hear the percentage chance of rain that day.
The fear, though, was very real and once I was in it, I could not get out of it. But the only thing that could get me out of it was: DANCING.
Dancing got me present. It engaged my ears, eyes, and body right there in the present moment so that I could not think of anything else. And not only did it get me present and out of my head – it got me feeling good. I can attempt to meditate all day – and I do love meditation – but it doesn’t always uplift me. Dancing ALWAYS does.
So, while it’s important that we all feel all of our feelings – I’m hoping you’ll use the tool of DANCE today to get you through moments of fear, doubt and worry.
Our little ones have so many feelings going on during this time that they cannot or do not know how to express: a little dancing will go a LONG way! It will also get them present, raise their spirits and have you all having some fun together.
This week I’ve recorded a video of an original movement song perfect for getting us dancing. It is a new song of mine that no one has heard before! It’s called Animal Parade.
Piper joins me in this video to demonstrate how to stomp like an elephant, gallop like a horse, jump like a kangaroo and waddle like a duck.
I’ve got a super fun swing-time-pop drum track playing to that makes it super dance-y – so be sure and turn it up!!
Give your self and your loved ones plenty of time and space to feel the swirl of emotions going on right now. And then be sure and take some time to dance.
And of course, PLEASE feel free to SHARE this video with as many people as you think would like it! The more you share, the more that YouTube algorithm smiles favorably on my channel making my channel more accessible to kids, families and teachers across the globe!
Here’s the link to watch and share: https://youtu.be/
AND – if you want to dance and move with us some more, be sure and tune in at 3:30 Central Time – 4:30 Eastern – for our daily sing-along:
