Most of us live constricted lives. The burdens and tasks of everyday living force our minds and souls into a small space. And many never escape. Life is a dreary plodding through a gray world. As Henry David Thoreau once wrote, "The mass of men live lives of quiet desperation". In those few, unguarded moments we all experience, we look into the mirror and ask the person that we see there, "Is this all there is?". And so I once believed. But after enrolling with the Arthur Murray Dance Studio in Clackamas, my once dark broodings have changed to light. That experience has made all the difference. "Ballroom dancing?" you ask. " Are you kidding me?". I would respond with a resounding NO. No kidding. In all seriousness, you would be hard pressed to find anything better. Yes, you learn the dance steps, which turn out to be amazingly fun, and great exercise, too. But you also learn other valuable things as well, almost by an invisible osmosis. I would call it a "life lesson" studio, really: the disciplined movements and the syncopated rhythms put you in touch with the physicality of your own body, learning the routines is wonderful exercise for training the mind, and the interaction among the fantastic teachers (and make no mistake, Salinas, Chelsea, Bethany, Phil and Issac are the greatest!), as well as the other students, is invaluable for building and refining interpersonal relationship skills, and making life-long friendships. In addition, the feeling of accomplishment one gets by successfully performing a challenging routine is one of the greatest feelings in the world--it bathes your mind in a world of sunshine, even while you're watching the Oregon rain come down. I might also add that Arthur Murray was multicultural decades before the term was even coined. There are so many fantastic songs from other cultures I have discovered from the dance routines, songs to which I wouldn't even have given a second thought before. But perhaps the greatest benefit is that it provides a way for expressing the inner yearnings of each of us. As the poet Robert Browning so eloquently put it..."a man's reach should exceed his grasp--or what's a heaven for?". We all want to go "beyond" ourselves--we desperately desire to find some way of releasing our inner self from it's constriction; our souls want to "slip the surly bonds of earth" and soar high and free. Some use a camera for this, some, tubes of paint, an easel and a camel hair brush. But the most fortunate, I believe, find it in dance. It combines all the seemingly disparate areas of a person into a wonderful harmony: physical, mental, spiritual and emotional. Arthur Murray Dance Studio-Clackamas. Come, and join us.
"I praise the dance, for it frees people
from the heaviness of matter and binds the isolated to community.
I praise the dance, which demands everything:
health and a clear spirit and a buoyant soul.
Dance is a transformation of space, of time, of people,
who are in constant danger of becoming all brain, will, or feeling.
Dancing demands a whole person,
one who is firmly anchored in the center of his life,
who is not obsessed by lust for people and things
and the demon of isolation in his own ego.
Dancing demands a freed person,
one who vibrates with the equipoise of all his powers.
I praise the dance.
O man, learn to dance,
or else the angels in heaven will not know what to do with you".
Saint Augustine read more