My first dance class this New Year took me back to the
very beginning of my Paris dance experience, where it all began in September 2014: the beautiful Centre de Danse
du Marais.
Back then, we were a few days shy of our one month anniversary of
moving to France. Everything was so new and we were still in the
‘honeymoon/feels like vacation’ phase.
We were still living in our temporary apartment on Rue
Pernety, a charming, loft-style space with worn hardwood floors, a spiral
staircase and much more of a neighborhood night-life than we’d bargained for.
Public transit was so daunting; I would look up my routes
well in advance and make meticulous notes in my phone. We didn’t even have
French phone numbers yet, let alone decent data plans, so any and all transit
apps were out. I got by on the wifi in our apartment and the occasional
functioning off-line map.
I was a bundle of nerves leading up to that first class:
on the one hand, I was anxious about getting there on time, having to speak
French at the front desk, finding the right studio, and actually doing the
class itself – what if the instructor spoke too fast? Was my technique up to ‘snuff?
What if I got injured?
But on the other hand, I was so excited to be finally
taking a ballet class in Paris, at this historic dance center, in the land
where ballet originated. My excitement won out over my anxiety; I went for it
and I loved it.
My experience in that first class was a victory on many
levels: my street-smarts, my French and my technique. It proved I could figure
it all out and make it work. I could dance here and feel at home, so I could
live here too.
But that was then. What about now?
Two and a half years into what will now be a five-year
stint in France, we are settled squarely into our real life here; ‘real life’
being work, baby, groceries, cleaning the bathroom, changing diapers, paying
taxes, endless French bureaucracy/paperwork and lingering homesickness. We are well
beyond the ‘honeymoon’ stage. We live in the suburbs, where we’re close enough
to the city that we can go in for a day and still marvel at all it has to
offer, but then go home where it’s quiet.
Public transit is so integrated in our daily lives, it’s
actually fun to try different routes to get places. Now when I leave my house,
all I worry about is getting somewhere on time, not getting lost.
And apparently, my French has also changed over the years.
Aside from that one weird time someone thought I sounded Portuguese (?), more
people ask if I’m British, not assume I'm American.
These changes happened gradually, as life unfolded itself
day by day. But I was hyper-conscious of them as I made my way back to Le
Centre. I strode in confidently from a direction I’d never taken before, spoke
French to everyone, found my class without any fuss and got down to dance class
business.
I was still nervous, since it was my first post-baby dance class, but I found out quickly I didn’t need to be. The exercises were straightforward
and not overly complicated, but still technical and challenging. We spent a few
minutes really breaking down the ronde de jambe exercise and reviewing the key
elements: rotate from the hips, pull up out of the supporting leg, engage the
abs, etc. It was a great refresher for my dancer brain, as well as my body.
The music choices were spot-on. I couldn’t help grinning
as we did our frappées to a piano version of ‘Everything is Awesome’ from the
Lego Movie and some center exercises to Taylor Swift’s ‘Shake it Off’. Who
wouldn’t love that?
What a wonderful feeling, after constantly negotiating
the changes in my life, to discover the essence of some things is exactly the
same. The class was still great. The instructor, Laurence, the same from last time, was still welcoming and supportive. I still love to dance and
my technique is still good enough.
Only this time, it wasn’t about proving that. It was
about revisiting the fundamentals, finding my center and building on where I
was at that moment. It was a very ‘yoga’ perspective to have in a dance class.
It also still felt like home, which is such a joy and comfort
these days.
Sometimes, it’s important to get back to basics - to go ‘home’,
check-in and see how far you’ve come – and use all that to keep dancing onward.
