Before I even got to campus, I knew I wanted to give the ballroom dance team a try. This was something I always wanted to learn but never had the chance. The advantage of ballroom dance is that it is relatively easy to start when you are older, especially compared to ballet. Of course, the earlier you start, the easier it is to go pro, but many people start learning how to ballroom dance in college. I was nervous in the beginning because I had never done any kind of dance before, but after going to a few of the newcomer lessons I was hooked. Since that first lesson back in September, ballroom dance has challenged me and forced me to step outside of my comfort zone, but I have truly enjoyed it.
One of the biggest challenges I’ve had to face is not feeling like I look like a dancer because I’m not built like a dancer. It has also been difficult because my body is not used to the movements and I haven’t developed the isolated body control required to take a performance to the next level. Even though I know everybody takes their own path in developing a skill, I do end up frequently comparing myself to others and feeling frustrated or inadequate. I challenged myself by competing twice in the fall semester, and though I had fun, I know competitions are not my style. I have never competed in anything that was judged solely on appearances, and I found that it made the issues I mentioned before even more pronounced.
Ballroom dance has and will continue to be a challenge that I gladly embrace, but at the end of the day, it is not my top priority. I don’t plan to continue competing, but the good thing is that there are other opportunities for me to continue dancing. Twice a month, the local ballroom dance studio on Wisconsin Avenue hosts an event where people come from all over the area to dance. Only a few of us are college students and basically everybody is very experienced, but the best way to get better is to dance with people who are better than you. As terrifying as it is each time, I have fun and I am always glad that I ended up going.
