24/7

When I first started dance classes I quickly became infatuated with belly dance culture. I felt there there must be some way to keep the glamorous side of dance around when I was not in class, or a watching a performance, or immersing myself in dance stuff. It reminds me a part in "Snake Hips" where Anne Soffee writes about how, in our fantasy worlds, belly dancers should always be living in some kind of Orientalist tableau, not partaking of normal (boring) everyday life (I'd put a quote in here but I leant the book to a friend).

Anyway, I was musing on this train of thought the other day, thinking about how now the belly dancer persona is something I both take on and off and keep with me all the time. And I was thinking about really, how can you keep a spark of your (enjoyable) personal fantasy with you as you schlep through your daily routine? You know what I came up with?

Practice.

Practice when you're not in class. Practice when you're not at a performance. Or chatting with dancers online. Or buying dance stuff. Or whatever. Practice to keep that magic going, to become a better dancer, to enjoy the dance. Practice at home, secretly at work, stealthily in line at the bank. Practice in sweats or a costume or workout gear. Work on hard things, work on fun things, or dance just for the hell of it.

It was a total "Duh!" moment.