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Hello
DT readers,
Just got back
from a fun trip to Florida. This was my first time
flying since the September 11th tragedy and I must
say; it was a little nerve racking at first. It was
comforting to see the National Guard and extra security
personnel at the airport and hopefully, in time, we
will be able to feel completely secure in our travels.
I guess we will wait and see.
Congratulations to Sarwat and Julia
Kaluby of Jacksonville, for the success of the their
competition, the First Coast Classic. The First Coast
Classic experienced an increased number of entries
from last year, (4,700), which was an uplifting sign
for competitors as well as fellow organizers who will
be hosting events in the coming months.
Not only are these apprehensive times for competitors,
but for organizers as well, as they try to make financial
decisions regarding package prices, prize money, number
of judges to hire etc. for their upcoming competitions.
Thanks to my wife, (Thank you, honey!), I was able
to escape some of these worries and spend an extra
day in the Sunshine State to do some fishing on the
Indian River with a couple of my dance buddies, Rosendo
Fumero and Jose Isaac. Although the fishing wasn't
as good as it could have been, I was still able to
pull in a couple of trout and some catfish, (yuk),
leaving me with a total of six fish. Rosendo caught
six fish too, which created a rule 11 (scrutineer
talk), which was in my favor because I was the only
one to catch a fish that was of legal size. I guess
that makes me THE WINNER! J Hey, I couldn't beat him
on the dance floor, so at least I out fished him!
Now I am back home, in front of my computer, waiting
for my creative writing skills to kick in. After several
hours of staring into my computer, my mind drifting
off to warm, sunny Florida, my wife, Becky, walks
by me and says "Hey, did you see this particular
subject on that dance site?" As she begins to
talk about it, I soon realize that it is obviously
her turn to do a guest spin! So, with out further
adieu (I never understood that phrase) I will turn
you over to my spouse. I will be taking a brief nap,
dreaming about my next fishing trip.
Thanks, Dan! Now, go mow the lawn!
Hi, Dance Trends readers! Every now and then, Dan
will ask me to do some net surfing to see what’s
happening in the dance world. I came upon an interesting
subject and would like to share my opinion as a parent,
and a former dance competitor, with you. It’s
a topic I have long thought about and I would love
to hear your thoughts as well.
Occasionally, I will hop onto DanceScape. I think
it is a very well run and exceptionally maintained
website for dancers. While some of the topics can
be negative, I think that, overall, it is a great
place for dancers to share thoughts and information.
We could talk about certain issues, such as anonymous
postings, but today, I want to talk about one topic
in particular. Currently, someone has started the
topic “The 100 most Beautiful Teens in Dancesport”,
an offshoot from “Hunks and Divas in Dancesport”.
I can’t help but wonder how many teens are clicking
into this topic daily, wondering if their name has
made the list today…. wondering and hoping that
someone thinks they are physically beautiful enough
to type their name in. Maybe their name has been mentioned.
Will others agree? Will they say nice things? Or will
they, to their disappointment, say that they do not
agree? How many teens are out there, hoping and praying
to make…..THE LIST?
I am reminded
of a story that a dear young lady told me about her
experience as a ballerina in a very prestigious ballet
company. We are talking, a big name company. She told
me about how she went to live in this particular city,
where she knew no one, except for those associated
with this company. She was of an average height and
probably would have been considered by most to be
a below average weight. Yet, she was constantly told
that she was fat and, of course, being quite young,
she believed that. She dieted and dieted to reach
the weight that was "desired" of her. She
did reach that weight. She was starving and near hospitalization
but she was told "You look good now!" She
physically could not continue and had to come home.
Her physical look was finally right, but her overall
health couldn't sustain it.
I tell this story
simply as an extreme example of an emphasis on physical
appearance alone. I think we are on dangerous ground
with the teens in our industry if they and we portray
their physical appearance as their most important
asset. I understand that we are involved in a visual
sport but there are several things we need to keep
in mind as we nurture the next generation of DanceSport
competitors toward their dancing goals. Teens are
ever developing individuals. They are not kids, yet
not adults, even though they may physically look like
they are. They have their own personalities and physical
qualities, just as adults do. Even as adults, we are
ever evolving. The young people of DanceSport are
even more so! They are so impressionable. I wonder
how many young people may give up on their DanceSport
dreams, if they are too fat, tall, short, freckly,
their nose is too big…..and the list goes on.
We know as adults how much our emotions can come into
the picture through dancing. Dancing is the very essence
of expressing emotion. As adults, we have the maturity
and experience to deal with this. (Hopefully!) We
always have to remember that preteens and teens don’t
have the years and background of experience that adults
do.
What are we to do to ensure that our next generation
of DanceSport competitors are healthy and well rounded?
I would love to hear feedback from some of the very
successful youth programs that we have currently operating
in the US. Dancing is a physical activity; I think
the emphasis on fitness is important. Dancing is visual,
we need to talk about grooming, but I think the most
important thing that we can instill in these young
dancers is confidence and belief in themselves. I
think the most important aspect to achieving their
goals will be the journey along the way. Maybe they
won’t all be champions, but they can strengthen
themselves for their future, whatever it may hold
and hopefully, their experience in DanceSport will
be a great factor in their successes. I hope that
our teens won’t place their entire opinion of
themselves on whether or not they make THE LIST. There
is enough pressure that teens experience in their
daily lives. Hopefully, we in DanceSport can emphasize
each teen’s assets and independent worth, help
them to navigate the pitfalls and nurture them on
their quest to adulthood.
Dan
& Becky Messenger
10-16-2001
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