Changes: Friendships

We change constantly and unpredictably. Most of the time, we don't even notice it. The changes can come from differences in environment, mentality, mood, etc. More often than not, we think of ourselves as "the same" while everything else around us evolves. But this stems from our inability to be outside of ourselves, that is to look at ourselves from the perspective of those around us. Habitually, we tend to see ourselves introspectively most of the time. When you change, it's inevitable that our relationships with those around us change as well, which leads me into the types of connections I want to talk about: friendships.

I feel like most people have/once had their little "crew" of close friends from high school. These are people we went through the dreaded pubescent high school years with and bonded with in the process. But after high school, everyone goes their separate ways to different schools, cities, states, maybe even different countries. Granted with today's inter-connectivity of technology and social media, it's pretty easy to keep those friends in your life and updated with your latest happenings. In some cases, you can remain besties with those high school friends forever and that's wonderful. To be more realistic, on the other hand, such friendships often begin to change without anyone realizing. It might be sad to think of friendships fading away and breaking apart but this happens and its no one's fault. We can't help that we're constantly changing because if we don't grow, we stagnate. We can become so different that the original friendship becomes confusing and almost uncomfortable. And the four year period of college after high school is where I believe a huge shift takes place, where we get a taste of freedom, independence, and responsibility. All this doesn't even have to apply to just high school friendships. As I've written about before, friendships can be so ephemeral and mercurial, it's hard to tell who will stick around and who will fade away. Don't be afraid or sad when something like this begins to happen. There's no way we can keep everyone that we meet over the years in our lives; there simply isn't enough time and energy for that. People come and go and that's something that we have to get used to. It doesn't mean you hate each other or don't want anything to do with them. There are many people who used to be in my life at some point and time. Despite how things have changed and how we've grown apart, I wish them only the best and still care for them.

We're all interconnected and part of this massive network on earth. Just picture different strings connecting you to everyone in your life. With each string, you're required to devote time and energy to maintain it. So don't overwhelm yourself with connections and be tied down the the point where you can't move. Know that when the time is right, you're allowed to cut off strings that no longer play a role in your life. Now don't view all your friendships as temporary engagements (oh goodness that would make friendship so meaningless). But don't try to force anything. Friendships are an amazing part of our lives and we should cherish the connections we make with others as they come and go.

On the topic of changes, here's one of my favorite Jeff Bernat songs

Take it easy ~

Been a minute

I can't believe I haven't posted in two weeks. Life's just been a bit crazy lately, but in the best way possible !!

I just wanted to take a moment and take in all that has happened to me recently. I guess I'm still riding off the high of accomplishing a really big goal I had set for myself. This was more than just a goal I wanted to reach, but rather a test for myself. It was a test of perseverance, dedication, and drive. It's not often that second chances are given and I was not going to let this get away from me. These past two months, I devoted myself to growing and putting my best self forward. The time really flew by and memories and new friends were made in the process.

It all came to a close last week and despite receiving a call that changed everything, it's bittersweet. Faces I was so used to seeing on a regular basis were suddenly gone, but a whole set of new faces were there for me instead. I guess in the end, I'm extremely grateful for the opportunity given to me. I don't regret anything along the journey and I'm excited that this is all just the start of a new journey down a different path. I can't wait to see where this path will take me and just how much growth and change I'll find on the way!

Your Heroes are People Too

This past week has been CRAZY. I had the chance to meet two of my biggest dance inspirations and I've just been riding on the high of being in the presence of my idols. They say that you should never meet your idols because you'll be disappointed. I get it, when your heroes are distant and seem unattainable, they maintain their untouched, perfect status. But with such high hopes, if you do see them in person, you may be disappointed to find that they're human just like you and me and have their own flaws. I heard this a long time ago and I completely understand the logic. But upon meeting my idols, I was not disappointed, but rather blown away by just how real and genuine they were.

I'm honestly still in a bit of shock that I was able to meet Dylan Mayoral. He's an urban choreography dancer from London, England and the fact that I got to learn from him last week still seems unreal. He's been my favorite dancer for a while now and I watch all his

videos, amazed at his strength, flexibility, and creativity. I admit it, I'm a bit of a fangirl but who wouldn't be?? Such incredible dance ability seems humanely impossible yet here he is surpassing my expectations time and time again. When he taught, he wasn't simply teaching movement, but intention and awareness. As dancers, we tend to forget that dancing is more than just moving our bodies from point A to point, but rather about the emotions and meaning behind each move. In a sense, you don't dance to the music but with the music, riding the rhythm, never anticipating the next sound (AKA, being in the pocket). This is pretty hard to do but just being able to see him execute the choreography so patiently and fully was enough to push me to work harder. Meeting and learning from him was definitely a blessing and it's great to know that he's not only an amazing dancer, but also a humble, dorky, hardworking individual who truly loves his craft. He's normally never in the states, let alone teaching such a private class, so I'm thankful that I was in the right place at the right time and got to learn from my favorite dancer.

And following Dylan Mayoral, I was given the opportunity to learn from Mari Madrid this week. Mari Madrid is basically a household name in the dance community. She's such a

powerhouse and Of all my years of dancing, I've never been able to take a class from her because each time a chance came up, I wasn't available. And on top of that, Keone and Mari have been busy with teaching internationally, World of Dance, and other jobs so there haven't been as many local learning opportunities. But last night, I was able to spend a couple hours learning from one of the most influential urban choreography dancers of my generation. It was truly magical to learn not only choreography, but also learn about how dance as changed her life and what motivates her to keep doing what she loves. Her message through dance is so inspirational and really demonstrates that movement can be a language in and of itself and can be used as a means to communicate with others. Movement that moves. Granted the choreography was a bit complicated, but I was just so happy doing that piece that I couldn't help but smile the entire time.

So meeting your idols and heroes doesn't have to be a scary things. I can definitely say that I'm even more inspired by these two individuals. Their genuine love for dance and knowledge gained through experience is unparalleled and I'm going to push forward with my own goals, keeping their lessons in mind. Your heroes may seem like distant and unattainable stars, but at the end of the day, they're people just like you and me.

Take it easy~