A Letter To My Younger Self

I follow TEDTalks on Twitter and Facebook.  Recently there was a post about writing a letter to a younger you.  What advice would you give?  What tid bits would you give to your younger self?  Dance Spirit magazine also does a feature every month where they choose a dancer to write their former self. In light of both of these, I decided that maybe it was about time to write a letter to a young BalletJ. 

(A young BalletJ, circa 1998, hip hop costume!)

A Letter To My Younger Self

Dear Young BalletJ,

You are a free spirit.  You thrive on creativity and don’t often follow the beaten path.  At times, it’s hard, particularly since you always want to be so accepted by your peers.  However, this difficulty is what makes you realize that it’s not worth it later on in life.  The things that you have done in your childhood, teen years, and young adult life- the hours of dancing, the creative stories you’ve written, the effort you’ve made to make music a part of your life (even if you did despise those private flute lessons for a long time),  your decision to stay straight edge- they have all made you a better person today.

Don’t take things too seriously.   Laugh every so often at yourself. Your teachers are going to get mad at you (come on, you know you’re stubborn!).   You may be threatened to get kicked out of class once or twice for having hair fall in your face.  Your teachers may push your buttons to the point where you want to walk out of class, but stick to the dancing.  Remember that your emotions may run high, but acting as a professional will get your farther along in your career as both dancer and teacher if you remain calm.  You are only treated this way by these people because believe that you can handle it.  They wouldn’t push you if they didn’t think it was worth it.

There’s the thing- you ARE worth it!  Believe in yourself!  You are often so doubtful in your capabilities as a dancer that you don’t just GO for it!  Push yourself to your limits.  Reach a little farther, tilt a little more on your leg, push that straddle down a little more- it will all pay off.   Your teachers clearly trust in your capabilities, so you should, too! 

Do what makes you happy.  If going into dance is making you miserable, then don’t go to class.  I can guarantee you that you will only go through one period in your life where you won’t want to dance.  Remember that dance is your passion, and that you love it.  Dance has always been what makes you happy, even through the injuries, the broken hearts, the criticisms, and the disasters.  It’s been your only constant in life, and it will continue to be your constant.  No matter what anyone tells you- “it doesn’t pay enough” “you’ll never make a living off of it” “it’s not a real job” “what are you going to do when you want to retire?” “you’re not good enough to make it anywhere” etc- you will always have it.  That drive to prove everyone wrong will help, but it’s your tenacity to follow your dreams that will keep you hungry for dance.

You are unique.  You are a good person.  You LOVE dance.  Don’t lose that.  These qualities better your chances for being where you want to be.  Always continue to grow and learn, and never ever lose your hunger for more. 

Keep those feet pointed!
An Older Wiser BalletJ