September 2011 Newsletter

Hi everyone,

I have some announcements for September!

I am going blue. No I am not morphing into a smurf or joining the Blue Man Group (although that could be fun), I am going for my  next level of training as a Nia educator this month.


Blue Belt, the second level of Nia education, explores how to create healthy relationships through body-centered communication. The week-long intensive I will participate in from September 17-23 will introduce me to the next set of 13 Nia principles, which focus on the mental, emotional and spiritual realms of the body.

The 13 Blue Belt Principles I will learn are:

1. The Joy of Being In Relationship
2. The Power of Two
3. Awareness, Insight, Clarity
4. Developmental Anatomy
5. The Power of Three
6. Split, Ellipt, Blend
7. Nia Class Format
8. The Power of Silence & Sound
9. Form and Freedom
10. FloorPlay
11. Music, Movement, Magic
12. Observe, Listen, Guide
13. Vertical Routines

I will be excited to integrate my new embodied learning into my classes and overall life.

All of my classes will be lovingly covered by my Nia colleagues Mollia Jensen, Jeanna Wheeler and Jill Pagano while I am in training:

• Saturday, September 17, 2011 at 1:00pm at Community Fitness Roosevelt Studio – Jill Pagano
• Sunday, September 18, 2011 at 10:30am at Delilah’s Belly Dance Studio in Fremont – Mollia Jensen
• Monday, September 19, 2011 at 5:30pm at Open Flight Studio in the University District – Jeanna Wheeler
• Wednesday, September 21, 2011 at 5:30pm at Community Fitness 65th Street – Jill Pagano
• Thursday, September 22, 2011 at 6:30pm at Fresh Fitness and Dance in Wallingford – Mollia Jensen
• Saturday, September 24, 2011 at 1:00pm at Community Fitness Roosevelt Studio –I may be back in time to teach but have asked Jill Pagano to cover my class just in case!

Class announcements:

Labor Day:
No 5:30pm class at Open Flight Studio on Labor Day, Monday September 5, 2011. I am teaching (subbing for Randee Fox) on Labor Day at 10:45am at Community Fitness on 65th Street. Drop-in for $12.

Events:

Special class:
An Exploration of Nia and Yoga: discovering health through movement
Date: September 25, 2011
Time: 2pm – 4pm

Where: Civetta Dance Space in Greenwood, 124 N 103rd Street
Seattle, Washington 98133
Cost: $20
What to bring: Yoga mat, water, your bare feet and wear comfortable clothes you can dance and do yoga in.
Join me and certified yoga instructor Liziah Woodruff for a 2-hour movement experience of Nia and Yoga. In addition to being an amazing yoga instructor, Liziah is also a dancer, artist, writer, healer, social activist and psychotherapist-in-training at LIOS Graduate College of Saybrook University. You can find out more about Liziah at http://liziahyoga.com/AboutLiziah.htm. In the Spirit of the intent of the Blue Belt training on creating healthy relationships through body-centered communication, our class focus is on discovering health through movement. 

Special foundational 6 week series:
Dancing from the Base of your Body - Happy feet, healthy knees, and strong legs: A foundational six-week series for everyone
This six-week series is for both new and experienced Nia students.
Class meets each Sunday from 10:30am - 11:30am from October 2 through November 6, 2011 at
Delilah's Belly Dance Studio in Fremont.
Cost: $65 for the six-week series
*Optional – an additional $60 for an educational package that includes the Nia Technique book, a class DVD, and a music CD.
Purchase both the 6-week class series and educational package for $100.

The focus of this foundational Nia series is on Principle 6 of the Nia white belt: The Base of the Body. The base of the body includes the feet, knees, and legs. You will learn all 27 base moves we use in Nia: 8 foot techniques, 9 steps, 6 stances and 4 kicks. There are a total of 52 official Nia moves so after this series you will only need to learn 25 more! In each 60-minute session we will break down each movement in three phases: learn the move, move the move and energize the move. At the end of the series, expect to have a mastery of the 27 base moves that will deepen your experience of Nia. Each session will include useful educational handouts and practice assignments you can easily do at home. If you come to all six sessions you will receive a graduation present. It’s a secret gift bag.

For an overview of each session: http://everybodyloveyourbody.blogspot.com/p/events.html

Register as soon as possible!

To register: email jennifer@everybodyloveyourbody.com

--
All classes for the month of September will explore relationships, communication, and discovering health through movement. I am in the early stages of learning the routines Humanity and the original Dream Walker and look forward to introducing songs from each this month. Some of you may be familiar with White Belt Dream Walker which I taught last year. The original Dream Walker uses different choreography to the same music and the moves are thrilling.

As always, I look forward to dancing with you and hope that even if I don't see you on the dance floor that you are taking every opportunity to dance through life.

With warmth,
Jennifer

Whole-Body Movement with 200/700 - 2x today!

A double dose of Nia! I am teaching twice today – this morning at 10:45am at Community Fitness at 65^th Street subbing for Randee Fox and again at 5:30pm at Open Flight Studio in the University District. Both classes will focus on whole body movement and using our over 200 bones and 700 muscles to stimulate creative movement.

Join me for an energetic class that includes soulful and tribal sounds from a variety of Nia routines.  Get ready to move from the tips of your toes to the top of your head.

The Wild Woman DARE

Tonight, at the Civetta Dance Space in Greenwood, 7 dancers came together and DAREd to dance their most dazzling and exquisite selves. We danced our fullness.

Before class began,I read the following passage to set our focus and intent. The passage comes from the Wild Woman Mystery Cards from the card titled "Dare." I modified it slightly and my modifications are in italics.

Wild Woman Dare 

Oh, our beauty is so abundant, our bodies so different, our passions so direct. As women we so often hide in shame the qualities of ourselves that bring attention. We say we are not good enough, not beautiful enough, not thin enough, not smart enough. We hide behind society's demanding modesty for fear of being seen.

Wild woman invites you to walk around bare faced, to take off the mask of modesty, to dare to bravely be beautiful and proud of it.

Dare to walk and dance everywhere; in the park, in the mall, in the forest, in the grocery store, on the dance floor, in the house, and through your life with a sense of awe about who you are...a wonder-full woman being.

Dare to be beautiful in sweat pants.
Dare to be beautiful in an evening gown.
Dare to be happy and laugh.
Dare to be sad and weep.
Dare to be full of life.
Dare to be who you are.
Dare to let your hair fly away in the wind on a cool afternoon.

Be DARE - Dazzling And Rare Exquisiteness.

--

A deep and heartfelt thanks to the 7 dancers tonight for taking on this dare with openness and joy. I also thank them for dancing with me tonight on the 9th anniversary of my father's passing. Tonight I experienced yet another layer of healing through our dance. Thank you with all my heart.

The Five Elements

The focus of tonight's class is integrating the energies of the five elements into our dance: Earth, Air, Fire, Water and Ether (Spirit). The intent is to stimulate creative movement while moving with the quality of these energies.

Photo from http://www.cinnabaracupuncture.com

Earth - Grounding energy, rooted, body folding or touching the Earth, feet, stability, low plane and palms to the Earth.

Air - Uplifting, raising energy up, imagination, imagery, light, eyes looking up, flexibility, high plane and palms up.


Fire - Passionate, dynamic, energy moving out, poking, sharp, strength, all planes and palms changing direction.


Water - Fluidity, undulating, mobility, soft, emotions, eyes follow hands, wrists and palm, and middle plane.


Ether/Spirit - Breathe, ever-present, fullness, mysterious, agility, all planes, and your unique essence/dance.

Join me tonight from 5:30pm - 6:30pm at Open Flight Studio in the University District as we transform the energy of the Nia routine, Butterfly, with these five elements.

The Upper Arm Bone, Grace and Freedom

“A graceful body is a body that appears to walk and fly at the same time. As if having wings, a graceful body seems to turn everyday movements into a dance of life that reflects grace, beauty, power and dynamic function. “

Nianow.com handout

The focus of tonight’s class is the dance of the upper arm bone combined with the energy of Duncan Dance. The intent is to experience physical grace and free-spirited playful and honest movement that originates from the upper arm bone.

The Voice of your Upper Arm Bone:

I am the voice of your upper arm bone. My name is humerus. Look at my top and by design you’ll see I have a small rounded ball that together with your shoulder blade gives flight, grace and power to your hand, arm, and core gestures.

Look at my bottom and you’ll see your elbow joint. When I am not in use I love to hang at your sides to help keep your shoulders down and relaxed. Always there for you, notice that I act in response to what you feel. If you feel afraid, you will find me hugging inward to hold and keep you safe.

If you feel excited, you’ll notice me moving wildly about. Like ski poles, the two of me help to keep you balanced by slightly swinging across your body as you walk. I am the part of you that expresses emotional truth. Watch what I do, where and how I energetically move, and you’ll get to know your emotional self intimately.

Nianow.com

Over the past three days I have been working with the Nia routine Butterfly. I will continue to work with it for the next few days.

Butterfly is Classic Nia routine for all levels. This transformational experience folds and unfolds your arms to stimulate your awareness of systemic movement, developing Flexibility, Agility, Mobility, Strength and Stability in your spine and upper extremities. Rhythmic variations isolate and integrate your pelvis, chest, head and spine, while simple patterns connect your base (stepping motions), core (pulsating rhythms), and upper extremities (folding and unfolding).

Spread your own butterfly wings through music, movement and personal expression, opening the front and back of your body for whole body conditioning.

Come fly with Butterfly!

Join me for class tonight from 6:30pm – 7:30pm at Fresh Fitness and Dance in Wallingford.

Dance of the Butterfly

In continuing my journey of learning about the energy, vibration and message of Butterfly, I stumbled across this poem today:

Dance of the Butterfly

Image from http://www.spiritwolf.se

The time has come for the butterfly to spread its wings,

to share beauty and grace, as it soars beyond to learn new things.

See its rainbow of colour dancing in the clear blue sky,

like tiny jewels of pureness, too beautiful to pass by.

Time has prepared it for this transition now,

and by following its path, it will be shown how.

To dance with the soft breeze stroking its cheek with a sigh,

the sparkle of sunlight glitters on its wings as it flies.

Toward a freedom that will be bound forever more,

courage gives it power and a Will to open new doors.

Far beyond the boundary of the world it has known,

to experience the mystery of new realms, it is shown.

Truth keeps it fluttering to the center of its core,

which brings joy and passion, based on feelings for….

Living life to full potential that is in the “now,”

if it keeps its heart open, it will be shown how.

And trust will release any fear that it feels,

unconditional love keeps it on an even keel.

The journey will be long and very hard at times,

but the delicate butterfly will dance and sing to the chimes.

For the wind and songbirds who are its friends,

will gently guide it along its path until it reaches the end.

And its wings of strength will never let it fall,

because the butterfly is special and it will conquer all.

by Margaret I. Jang
(http://www.onesourcelearn.com)

The Joyful Dance of Transformation

This past weekend I started teaching songs from the Nia routine Butterfly. I have been working with this routine for months. I struggled to learn it. Since March, something wasn’t connecting for me with the routine. I would feel a combination of sadness and frustration when doing the moves and listening to the music. I found myself putting the routine away and nearly gave up on learning it.

A couple of weeks ago I felt compelled to pick it up again and it flowed through me. The movements came with ease. It was easy for me to visualize dancing my colorful big beautiful wings around the room. My body felt open, receptive and joyous.

I don’t know what changed or when but some big shift occurred that allowed me to receive Butterfly into my body, heart, mind and soul.

When I started teaching songs from Butterfly this week, I noticed that she appeared everywhere. It was as if she was asking me to embody her message. So I did some research…

Butterfly represents transformation, metamorphosis, change, freedom, beauty, spirit, transmutation and the dance of joy. She represents going within to come out whole again. She asks us to dance joyfully through changes in our lives and to savor the sweetness that comes.

From “Animal Speak” by Ted Andrews:

“Butterflies appear to dance as they light upon flowers and such. They remind us not to take things quite so seriously in our lives. They awaken a sense of lightness and joy. They remind us that life is a dance, and dance, though powerful, is also a great pleasure. Butterflies can be reminders to get up and move, for if you can move you can dance. Dance brings the sweetness of life back.”

From “Power Animal Meditations” by Nicki Scully:

“Take an idea or concept of what you want to be and how you want to see yourself, then take this journey and go within. When you break out of your cocoon, you will have become that which you intended. The costume that the butterfly brings back from within the darkness and mystery of the cocoon is the beauty of the spirit of yourself in all your glory. The metamorphosis of the Butterfly is about the mystery of what happens when you go within to the darkness to manifest the beauty you were born to create.”

Butterfly is asking me to dance, to unfold into the changes in my life with grace and without resistance, to go within and transmute whatever darkness or shadow is holding me back, to break out of my cocoon and step into my glory…whatever that is. It got me thinking about what it is I want to manifest. My simple answer for now is that I want to manifest joy, healing and beauty in the world. In the present time, I have chosen Nia to help me share this vision and am receptive to what comes next.

This week, our class focus will be the joyful dance of transformation. The intent is to go within, connect with your deepest desire, transmute any barriers and unfold your wings of freedom so that you can pursue your hearts desire. Butterfly is here to joyfully and playfully guide us.

Experience the transformative energy of Butterfly anytime this week:

• Monday, August 15, 2011, 10:45am - 11:45am at Community Fitness 65th St Studio (for Randee Fox)
• Monday, August 15, 2011, 5:30pm - 6:30pm at Open Flight Studio in the University District
• Tuesday, August 16, 2011, 6:00pm - 7:00pm at the Civetta Dance Space in Greenwood (Tuesdays through August 30)
• Wednesday, August 17, 2011, 10:45am - 11:45am at Community Fitness 65th St Studio (for Jill Pagano)
• Wednesday, August 17, 2011, 5:30pm - 6:30pm at Community Fitness 65th St Studio
• Thursday, August 18, 2011, 6:30pm - 7:30pm at Fresh Fitness and Dance in Wallingford
• Sunday, August 21, 2011, 10:30am - 11:30am at Delilah's Belly Dance Studio in Fremont

A Nia-Full Week

A week FULL of Nia starts tonight, Friday, August 12, 2011!

9 classes straight and I am preparing to unveil and Butterfly.

In addition to my regularly scheduled classes, I am subbing this week for my Nia colleagues Jena Hennessey, Randee Fox and Jill Pagano at the Civetta Dance Space in Greenwood (Jena) and morning classes at Community Fitness (Randee and Jill).

Join me as often as you can :)

• Friday, August 12, 2011, 6:00pm - 7:00pm at the Civetta Dance Space in Greenwood (for Jena Hennessey) 
• Saturday, August 13, 2011, 1:00pm - 2:00pm at Community Fitness Roosevelt Studio
• Sunday, August 14, 2011, 10:30am - 11:30am at Delilah's Belly Dance Studio in Fremont - PLUS free special Belly Dancing class after Nia!: Stay for an extra half hour (11:30am - 12pm) after Nia for a free 30 min belly dance class taught by Delilah. "Circle Belidi; A Dance of Birthing and Reclaiming" - This is a dance Delilah has taught dancers all over the world. It just might be the first belly dance folk dance! It's made up of 7 steps and is a fun and empowering! 
• Monday, August 15, 2011, 10:45am - 11:45am at Community Fitness 65th St Studio(for Randee Fox)
• Monday, August 15, 2011, 5:30pm - 6:30pm at Open Flight Studio in the University District
• Tuesday, August 16, 2011, 6:00pm - 7:00pm at the Civetta Dance Space in Greenwood (Tuesdays through August 30)
• Wednesday, August 17, 2011, 10:45am - 11:45am at Community Fitness 65th St Studio (for Jill Pagano)
• Wednesday, August 17, 2011, 5:30pm - 6:30pm at Community Fitness 65th St Studio 
• Thursday, August 18, 2011, 6:30pm - 7:30pm at Fresh Fitness and Dance in Wallingford

And after all of this I may need to sleep for a week ;)

Moving Your Shoulders as Elegant Wings

The focus of tonight’s Nia class is movement with the shoulder blades. The intent is to provide more freedom, mobility and expression of the shoulders, chest and upper back.

The shoulder blades are two thin, flat bones on the back of the body. You can visualize the shoulder blades as hands on the back of your body or like elegant wings expanding out the side of your body. One of the essential functions of the shoulder blades is to provide freedom and to give life to your hand and arm expression.

The movement of our hands has a direct impact on our shoulder blades. The simple reciprocal action of moving the palms up and down stimulates the back of the body (sensing nerves) and the front of the body (motor nerves). Moving the palms up, leading with the pinky finger, allows you to sense support from behind and underneath while opening the shoulder joint and allowing your shoulder blades to swing down and out. Moving with palms down, leading with the thumb, moves energy down and allows your shoulder blades to return to resting.

The entire shoulder girdle is meant to be mobile. We will work with various movements tonight to free the shoulder joint and allow for mobility and full range of expression.

Here is a wonderful little one-page Nia student handout on the shoulder girdle.

I am easing into teaching the Nia routine Butterfly by starting with a couple of songs combining them with songs from Opal. Within a week, we will spread our butterfly wings!

Join me tonight for an exploration of your elegant wings from 5:30pm- 6:30pm at Community Fitness 65th Street Studio. Open to non-Community Fitness members for a $12 drop-in.

The Five Sensations and the Art of Sensing

The focus of tonight's class is the Five Sensations and the Art of Sensing. The intent is to use sensation to learn about your body as it moves and become your own somatic teacher.

The Five Sensations, also knows as FAMSS, are:

Flexibility is the sensation of energy moving outward. It is free, open, elastic and expansive. It is the physical feeling of releasing power and is nurtured by opening your joints.

Agility is the sensation of starting and stopping the movement of energy. It is playful, stimulating and quick. It is cultivated and maintained by quickly starting and stopping a variety of movements.

Mobility is the sensation of energy in constant motion. It is fluid, constant, continuous, alive and free. Mobility is sensed as energy flowing in all directions using a variety of ranges of motion. It is cultivated and nurtured by opening and closing joints in a variety of ways without stopping.

Strength is the sensation of energy moving inward. It is concentrated, powerful, intense, internal and gripping. It is the sensation of containing and sustaining power.
Strength is sensed as a squeezing in or the packing of energy towards the bones.

Stability is the sensation of energy moving from center out all directions simultaneously. It is grounded, solid, calm, rooted, and connected to the earth. It is sensed as readiness for action - a relaxed and dynamic tension of harmony. Stability is nurtured by resting into stillness while seeking balance. It relies on relaxation, postural integration, and optimal alignment of the body.

Tonight we will activate each of the Five Sensations and attuning to the unique sensation of each we will learn to tweak our movements to heighten and sustain the sensations of pleasure and Joy.

Join me for class at 5:30pm at Open Flight Studio in the University District.

Dynamic Ease

The focus of this morning's class is Dynamic Ease. The intent is to personally connect to the sensations of dynamic and ease, and to know how to self-activate and monitor these two sensations to bring into your workout energetic balance and harmony. We will also be using our breath to track and active these sensations.

Dynamic is described as the action of infusing what you do with energy. The energy can come from the activation of one of the five sensations (flexibility, agility, mobility, strength, and stability), from any of the 9 movement forms, or from infusing the physical action of in with the sensation of either dynamic or ease, and the physical action of out with the sensation of either dynamic or ease.

Ease is described as the sensation of relaxation. When action, the energy expenditure phase of a movement, is balanced with relaxation, the rest and recovery phase of a movement, the body becomes organically physically strong and flexible and energetically harmonious and balanced. It is imperative that the body be given active and restful cycles, periods of time where the body can move energy, similar to breathing, with energy coming in and then going out, or energy going out and then in.

In either case, the opposite action or dynamic is what creates the balance. If the dynamic quality is sustained for extended periods of time, as in more repetition of the same energy experience, certain conditioning effects and benefits will occur, such as an increase in the awareness of that dynamic sensation and an increase in the awareness of how that sensation adds to muscle tone and muscle definition.

If the ease quality is sustained for extended periods of time, as in an increase in maintaining the move with ease, certain other benefits will occur that add to awareness and an understanding about how ease plays an important role in maintaining cardiovascular endurance, strength, flexibility, mobility, agility, stability, balance, and coordination.

By combining dynamic actions with ease, the heart, lungs, nervous system, breath, and body relationships become more efficient in natural and organic ways that increase the sustainability of fitness and well being. Play with Jazz and Modern Dance, Aikido, Tae Kwon Do, and Tai Chi.

The routine I am working with, Sanjana, brings a healing wave and resonance of dynamic ease to your body. Centered in Nia’s philosophy – the movement of energy is medicine – the music of the routine invites you to seek a balance of expressive vitality and sensual release.

Join me this morning at 10:30am at Delilah's Belly Dance Studio in Fremont.

Ready! Set! Go! - A Year Later

Last year on this date I taught my first public Nia class. I had seven wonderfully supportive students-friends who came to dance and help usher me into this new phase of my life as a movement facilitator. The photo below says it all - we danced, laughed, played and in the end, we were all glowing.

I wanted to share with you the first blog post I wrote as a Nia instructor. The post provides my experience and perspective on Nia. It is even truer today than it was a year ago.

A year later, I am learning to become a better facilitator and I am the healthiest and fittest I have ever been - and I mean health from all angles: body, mind, spirit, and emotional well-being. It's not just that I have a physical practice, it's also that the philosophy of Nia (joy and pleasure) have informed the decisions I make about food, relationships, work, stress-management and self-care. I have both my Nia and Nia 5 Stages practice to thank for this optimum state of health and well-being.

I am looking forward to sharing this incredible practice with the world this year again and for years and years to come.

You can start by joining me today for Nia at 1pm at Community Fitness on Roosevelt :). Ready! Set! Go!

First class at Crown Hill School - August 6, 2010

Originally published on August 6, 2010:

Today, I begin my journey as a Nia teacher, adding to my ongoing practice as a student. There is a nation of butterflies dancing away in my belly. They are dancing to the tune of both anxiety and excitement. I trust that when 6:45pm arrives, I will allow these butterflies to dance me through teaching!

As this is my first blog post on Everybody, Love your Body, I would like to share a little bit of my story with you. When people ask me, “what is Nia?” I usually respond with great enthusiasm “it’s the most fun I’ve ever had! It is a holistic fitness practice that is a blend of dance, martial arts and yoga. And I always wear a full body smile from the beginning of class straight through to the very end.” That’s a simplistic response but my energy and delivery are typically met with “wow, I would like to try it someday!” It’s not easy to explain the Nia technique using words; it’s something that must be experienced.

I prefer to share why I love Nia. It’s the only movement practice I have found that encourages me, or rather demands, that I truly be myself and “move” my own way. This works perfectly for someone like me who thrives on freedom and individuality. The practice also feeds that insatiable part of me that craves constant movement, exploration, and variety. And I learn something new about my body and the way it moves and has the potential to move every single day so that I can reach my own optimum health.

There is a concept in Nia called “The Body’s Way.” It essentially means we use the body in accord with its design, function and structure. There is another concept called “Your Body’s Way.” This is my body’s current design and way of moving. In time, with the Nia practice, a synthesis occurs between the two. It is an ongoing practice as I become more flexible, mobile, stronger, stable and agile.

These concepts are carried out in the Nia practice and provide me with a solid structure (the Body’s Way) and tremendous freedom (my Body’s Way). It is also systemic; there isn’t a single part of my body, mind, heart, or soul that isn’t moved in this practice. This practice respects and embraces my individuality, my own unique way of moving and self-expression. What more can I ask for?

Ok, maybe there is one more thing I can ask for that Nia delivers. The practice is guided by pleasure. Imagine that? No pain in fitness. In Nia, we are instructed to move in a way that feels good and invigorating and to avoid anything that hurts or is exhausting. And so I am now in the greatest shape of my life, from the inside out, and it’s all been guided by pleasure, being true to myself, and moving my own way. That, in a nutshell, is why I love Nia.

With that, here I go to share this incredible practice with others! Ready! Set! Go!

Body Gratitude

The focus of tonight's class is Body Gratitude. The intent is to acknowledge and celebrate your body.

This focus was inspired by a line I read by Nia co-founder Debbie Rosas:

"Thank you, body, for the constant loving feedback you give to me, and for helping me to refine and tweak my movements so that I can move with greater ease, dynamic ease and improved function." - 

I practice body gratitude when I do my five stages and self-healing ritual every morning. I have found that this simple act of acknowledging and giving thanks to this body of mine has elevated my experience of pleasure of moving and being in my own body.
She knows I am listening and am more deeply attuned and she responds with magic.

I am inspired to bring this practice into my classic Nia class.

Join me tonight, 6:30pm at Fresh Fitness and Dance in Wallingford, for dancing gratitude.

Tuesday Night Nia in August

I am teaching Tuesday evenings for the entire month of August! I am subletting Susan Tate’s timeslot at the Dance Space. 

Come join me for Tuesday night Nia in August:
When: Tuesday 8/2, 8/9, 8/16, 8/23 and 8/30
Time: 6:00pm – 7:00pm
Where: Civetta Dance Space in Greenwood
124 N 103rd St, Seattle, WA, 98133

Map:

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A Year Later

Last year, on August 1, 2010, I held my very first Nia class. It wasn’t a public class (that was coming on August 6th!) but a practice session with five dear friends: Susan, Gretchen, Teresa, Gina and Rachel. Three had done Nia before and two had never tried Nia before. Even though these were five familiar, loving and highly supportive faces, I arrived at the Dance Space with my stomach in knots. I was gripped by anxiety and terrified I’d forget the steps and cues. Terrified they’d be bored, hate Nia or think I was a terrible teacher. Oh the lies I told myself!

Trembling, I introduced myself, welcomed my five friends, set the class focus and shared the title and intent of the routine, Sanjana. I turned on the music and even with a couple of little mistakes (that only I noticed) the magic of Nia came through. Without a doubt, each time, the Joy of movement always comes through. Nia always delivers this promise.

Even if I couldn’t mentally remember what movement came next, my body memory was solid and the movements arose with such ease and reliability. The practice of Nia has reminded me that I am truly a somatic being and that movement is truly a part of my life purpose. What was affirmed for me on this first day of teaching was that I love to teach somatic movement. I had never taught anything physical prior to this day and afterwards, I instantly knew it would become an integral part of my life journey.

Sharing Nia as an educator/instructor has been a treasure. When I looked in the mirror and saw my friends moving in their own unique ways, each one expressing a movement like only they could, I knew I was home. These five beautiful women supported me with openness, love, support and encouragement. They also danced their hearts out – playing, laughing, sounding, dancing and being the moment.

What I love about teaching is playing a small part in serving as a catalyst for discovery and expression. I love the “present-ness” of it all. A huge part of Nia is being in the present moment, experiencing and tracking sensation in our bodies moment to moment and movement to movement so that we tweak and sustain in the direction of pleasure and away from pain. This message and practice has overflowed into every aspect of my life over this past year. I read an article today titled “How to Sustain Happiness.” You can read it here. The essence of the article is that happiness is found and sustained in the now. It is found in the present moment.

Teaching Nia has required of me both discipline and a complete commitment to sensation. In order to sense, I need to be in the now. Over the past year I have learned to surrender to the present moment and be with the simplicity and joy of my own movement in my body. This has been just one of the many gifts Nia has brought me this first year of teaching.

With that, I thank Nia for this gift and thank Susan, Gretchen, Teresa, Gina and Rachel for initiating me on this path. Each of them has been with me in Spirit this past year as I have learned, unlearned, re-learned and honed how to deliver this incredible practice.

This week, I will be teaching that first routine, Sanjana, again. I am approaching it with a beginners mind and body and still have those butterflies in my belly but this time the negative chatter is gone and replaced my excitement and anticipation for the wonder to come!

With a heart filled with gratitude,
Jennifer