It Started With A Dance
This blog might be one from out of the blue, but let me assure you, over the past several weeks I have had my fair share of time to reflect about life in general. Reflection can be a scary thing, but it's something we all need to do.
It started with a dance. Many of you know, I'm a dance mom and have been for 10 years. I've been watching competitive dance numbers for years, but something about "I'm Saved" this weekend had tears flowing. Also if you know me, I don't get emotional. I can't even remember one single number in dance history that moved me to tears, one that told a true story to an audience. As I listened to the words of this number:
Hope got my hands tied around my back
And time put a rope around my head And hung from the rafters of my fear Dark in the eyes Try and face the world, I can’t bear to My knees hit the ground and my hands start shaking Old feelings from new faces A rope on the floor and a poor man hanging Please help me chop this tree down Hold me from underneath Words never once cut me down Oh, don't you cry for me On the car ride for Day #2 of dancing, I asked my 12 year old daughter what story they were trying to convey on stage with that number. After listening to her explanation, I could see the choreographers point of view come into play onstage, which I assume is what caused the tears? I asked my husband, Brad, the same question. His explanation of the dance/lyrics came from a time period in the United States that was pretty raw.
Both of these interpretations are/were valid, but what about mine? Why did tears flow down my face while watching this number? After listening to the song about 35 times in the last 48 hours, (no, I'm not kidding, ask the family) I realize there are several key words: hope, time, fear, face and feelings. Words of emotion, often told to FRIENDS.
Out of all the people I have came to know the 41 years of my lifetime, who would help me chop down my tree? My tree of hope, time, feelings and fear? Who would hold me up, when these emotions got the best of me? To no surprise to me, these people were pretty easy to identify. These people aren't superficial, these people are real and best of all, these people are there for me; not for themselves or any other reason. These are the people I don't need to talk to every day, these are people sometimes I don't talk to for weeks but when I pick up the line, time doesn't exist.
This day in age, time is something of the past. The more technologically advanced we get, the more work we have and the less time we get to spend communicating with the ones that love us, the ones that give us hope, have time to talk about the rope around our neck, can listen to our fears, our feelings and help us face the world.
Take a moment to think about those people in your life. With social media it might seem like we all have healthy friendships/acquaintances because we are sharing a piece of our life with the our "friends" frequently. However think about the select few who don't need social media to know who you really are?
Once you have identified who you have true friendships with, let it help you guide your children with finding friends that will help chop down their tree, hold them from underneath and help them in their rafters of fears. A psychologist once said if a friendship last more than 7 years, it will last a lifetime.
