Adjusting to life back at the studio has not been easy for me. Honestly, living your dream is not always skipping in flower patches or relaxing by the beach. It can be hard.

The last week and a half has been that.

Hard.

And that is okay.

It has been hard for a multitude of reasons. As I mentioned briefly in last post, my flight was delayed and I showed up on Monday morning of last week. My body took all week to adjust back to waking up early and doing all the physical activity that a dance career endures. On top of adjusting my sleep schedule, my body was so sore and in so much pain. I needed to take the break that I took to protect my body for later, but man, coming back to dance is so hard. Every morning I woke up in pain. Lastly, I was learning all new material.

The first week, the second company of Ballet Austin was learning Quiet Imprint choreographed by Thang Dao. The ballet is a contemporary ballet with a lot of partnering and abstract movement. So much information was being thrown at us and the hope is that all of information is sticking... It was very difficult to put different pieces of the ballet together and be familiar with the movements. I am very excited to perform the ballet, but it is a difficult piece to coordinate timing, music, dancing, and partnering.

This past week, Ballet Austin second company has been hard at work finishing up Michelle Thompson Ulerich's piece that we started in the fall. If you don't remember, you can read all about it here. It has been an absolute pleasure having Michelle back in the studio. What an experience to have a piece of art created on me and us as a company. Not only am I so excited to perform the piece, I am excited to see the finished product. It has been a process from the beginning when we had no steps, to a full ballet. She will be leaving after Friday which means she has only been here for a week. We have had to fit in a lot of information and move at a quick speed which can be demanding at times, but also exciting because we have a deadline to finish the piece.

Something came up for me personally that began to bother me. The adjustment back to Austin has not been easy as I said before. As I write, I want to be genuine. This life that I live, although it is a life that I treasure, is not easy. I was talking to my friend Jake about it at ballet. I was anxious in the studio, but he calmed with two words.

Just dance.

Simple, but so powerful.

Life can be crazy. Rehearsals can be crazy. Our jobs can be crazy. We can be crazy.

But-

Just dance.

I interpret that as, get lost.

Get lost in whatever I am doing.

It may feel so simple but get lost. Do not let all that outside noise get in the way of what I am doing presently. It is so easy to get distracted. Maybe you are not a dancer, but life can easily get in the way of what you may be trying to accomplish at work.

Just dance (RULE 102).

As I go about my week and next- I will get lost in my movement. I will be very busy in the upcoming weeks with the staging of a lot of smaller ballets as we get ready for the spring productions. I am excited for the many opportunities to come.

And yes- tables are involved in Michelle's piece and it is EPIC.

Just Dance