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When life gives you thera-bands, stretch them!

My beloved dance teacher and friend, Miss Kristi, gave me much helpful information before I took my dancing to the next level. She told me that not everyone survives in this “ballet world.” It can be a rough place filled with “I’ll beat you there!” and “This role is MINE!” but our love for this glorious sport, along with faith, is what gives us the strength to continue on this path.

I realized just how tough you must be to live this life after a summer intensive I participated in this year. I did not post a thing about it– I wasn’t quite ready. This rough experience with my first male dance teacher made me wonder, “Can I do this? Can I stand up to the instructors? Do I even want to?” I knew my life would never be the same.

The other day, up popped the opportunity to dance with Ballet Magnificat!! After my experience this summer, would I accept? Emma talked to Miss Sara. Was I surprised when she replied, “Yeah, of course you should go!”? No…

“Why?” you ask?

Miss Sara told us during the Firm Foundation Intensive to take a deep breath and step out of that comfy place we have put ourselves in– to let bad experiences teach us something (in my case, it is good to learn different styles from different teachers and to keep pushing yourself to do your very best!) and to try something new. 

So I took a deep breath. I stepped out. I tried again. Dancing with Ballet Magnificat! is one of the most wonderful opportunities I have ever taken! Truly life changing!

So, when life gives you thera-bands, stretch them as far as they will go– that’s what they’re for! And if yours should snap, pick up a stronger one and try again. Things happen, but God is always right there beside you, ready to hand you a new opportunity to shine. <3

Four days seems like too long to wait. Emma is counting down the hours, but I cannot bring myself to look up the exact amount of time left– four is a much smaller number anyway.

Because this awfully long period of four days seems like too long to wait, I thought, “I might as well put up a random blog post so people do not become as bored as I am while waiting, waiting, waiting….” I do not even have classes today… oh, my!

Well, on Monday I learned “chasse tours” in ballet. They are so much fun! I am not sure I did a beautiful job executing the turns, but I had a great time! Haha, they’ll get better.

Yesterday, I tried another triple pirouette. Miss Sara asked if it had been gorgeous (as it was on Friday), but I had to admit that I did a slight hop at the very end of the move. However, in cherubs, before class had started, I was in Studio A by myself and tried again. Of course, when no one was watching, I completed a beautiful triple! I do not mind all that much that I celebrated alone– I did it and am able to tell the tale to all you lovelies.

Now, I wait for tomorrow, as I have modern. I hope we do those complicated combinations I have been working on….

That’s right, dancers– the first Nutcracker Rehearsal has come and gone with such speed! Here is how it all played out:

The dance studio that the rehearsals take place at is actually connected to my church building, so I feel right at home! I went in with my mom, signed in, and walked back to the dressing area (Phew! So many details!). Emma was already there, eating a quick lunch. Caroline showed up a few minutes later with Anna not too far behind. Emma, Emma (my dance sister’s friend who is Clara in two of the four performances) and I all did some warming up and were soon called into the studio. Miss Kiara, the coordinator of the show, was looking over some papers and Miss Patty, teacher of the Party Scene, was there to welcome us. She “laid down the law” and sent us right to work! We were separated by height and did many chasses across the floor. We were then separated into groups and were told what kind of Party Girls we were to be; I am a Party Girl (partnered with a boy named Max) in Dance 1, Cast A along with Anna. Caroline is my Cast B. Emma is a Garland Girl in Dance 2 and is in all four performances! I am so happy for her.

Dance 2 was dismissed 15 minutes early. Dance 1 (Anna, Caroline and I) stayed to practice more chasses along with curtsies and ballet runs. It was so much fun!

Next week (Sunday) is pointe shoe day! Sadly, the fitting cuts in with my Nutcracker Rehearsal and I have already filed an excused absence. I hate to miss practice, but there are many rehearsals and only one scheduled pointe shoe fitting. I know I will be able to catch up. 

Unless something unexpected happens this week (and it certainly could) watch out for “Pointe Shoes!”

Creative Pointe Dancer

Eight days until en pointe! Whoo-hoo!

Well, I guess you could say that “the out of the ordinary” happened between Monday and yesterday. The best happened yesterday, but of course, Tuesday and Thursday come before Friday…:

Well, ballet class was pretty normal on Tuesday. It was in Cherubs that the unusual happened. Many more girls showed up for the second class– they are all even more adorable than last week! I got out a notepad and managed to list the names of a few girls and match the name to the appearance. I have not gotten them all listed yet, but I think of a new little girl to match every once in a while. Anyway, walking out, one of the moms (of a girl I have not managed to remember the name of yet) thanked me for helping her daughter stay on track in class; that really made my day…!

Modern was fantastic on Thursday! We did some tricky combinations (that were certainly not perfect in class), so I practiced them when I got home. They are much easier and SUPER fun now!

Alright… drum roll please… FRIDAY! In ballet, we worked on Grade 2 and a few other things we have been doing since last year. I was hungry in beginner pointe; I ate an entire yogurt parfait (minus the granola– I gave that to Anna) while warming up my feet. Miss Sara had to talk to one of the moms outside for a lot of Cecchetti Grade 1, so we taught ourselves! We have figured out how to use Miss Sara’s iPad, so we put on some music and got all the way through barre and three combinations into center. It was quite fun yelling at each other– “Point  your feet! Incline your head! Carve the pumpkin!” It was hilarious.

I believe it was in Grade 2 (class) that I randomly decided I was going to do a pirouette. I was going to do a perfect double and that was that. I went around once– twice– what? three times! YES! I did a PERFECT triple! Miss Sara flipped! She reiterated “That was GORGEOUS!” a million times and wished that she had chocolate to give me…! It was awesome.

There is my out of the ordinary news to share! Watch out for the Nutcracker post that is coming soon! Also, a surprise post is on its way… hmm…

Pointe Dancer

Twelve days until pointe shoes…!

I decided that now (as I wait for the clock to show 3:30 p.m. so I may leave for the cherubs class) would be the perfect point in time to describe my Monday evening. Here we go…!

Monday was really quite fun! I went to ballet class (highest level only) and danced until I thought I would fall over for working so hard (as I was walking out the door)! It is another large class; I am so thankful for the larger size of the new studio! During class, we worked hard at barre and Miss Sara gave us some extra stretching time. We did some Grade 2 in center– yay! I feel like I am getting much better at Cecchetti now that we are working on it more and more.

My goodness… short post! That seems to be it, though… oh, well! My next post will most likely (unless something out of the ordinary happens in class this week) be a Nutcracker post; my first rehearsal is on Sunday.

Green Pointe Shoes

I guess it is a little late in the rainbow for green pointe shoes (Have you figured me out yet?)…. Whatever.

Good afternoon! 

Friday classes were amazing! Three and a half hours later– still amazing! Yes, it was a long evening, but so much fun. The only thing better than sleepovers is dancing into all-hours. I knew when the pet groomers’ (next door) closed up shop that I still had a long way to go, but class goes by way too fast. By the time I left the studio, the entire street was quiet– everything was closed (or being closed).

First, I had ballet class. I believe it is the largest class I have ever been in; when full, we have 21 girls. Crazy! Good thing we are using our newest addition to the studio– Studio C! It is a separate building but much larger than studios A and B. It is so new, you can still smell fresh, pink paint! It truly is gorgeous.

After that, I had beginning pointe. We did a lot of stretching in our feet. They are very sore today– yay! Miss Sara says that is always a good sign (of working hard that is). Anyway, we went over who is riding in who’s car on the way to get pointe shoes and such. Just 15 days left until iPointe (Oh, yes, I did make that up myself)!

Lastly, I had Cecchetti Grade 1 and Grade 2. The exams are almost here; I will be ready. I have been practicing a little something everyday– now it is time to practice EVERYTHING everyday.

Pointe Shoes

Modern ended several hours ago, leaving me in much pain. Now I am laughing at myself; who knew modern would work muscles that I did not even know I had? I thought ballet was as painful as it gets– I was wrong. Modern certainly taught me something today: there is still much to learn and improve on. My dance journey has only just begun— I cannot wait to buy my next ticket to ride (show up at my next class) and see what else I can learn!

Anyway, back to the main update. Modern class was AMAZING. Miss Sara, being a professional modern dancer, is phenomenal! Modern, I learned, has a lot in common with ballet. You must still hold your center to keep balance, focus on the movement of your feet and other such things, but it is much more… free. I love it! Many things are in parallel (rather than turned-out). The biggest thing I need to work on is not being a ballerina for an hour…! SO HARD! My arms really need to loosen up; I will get there before long. Emma said it could take about three weeks to start shaking the ballet off (only for that class of course). I plan on making that time shorter…!