“ Life is like dancing. If we have a big floor, many people will dance. Some will get angry when the rhythm changes. But life is changing all the time“
( Don Miguel Ruiz)
Have you ever really had to restrain yourself? Do you sometimes have to hold back on an impulse? When is second guessing yourself a good thing?
For all the wise words written about seizing the moment, jumping into action, or taking a chance, there’s an equally persuasive case to be made for being careful.
So which is it — “Look before you leap” or “He who hesitates is lost”? It’s one of those eternal debates, a good argument can be made for either one, but perhaps they don’t have to be mutually exclusive.
You might have a strong tendency in one way or the other. Just like some people’s glasses are always half-full while others are perpetually approaching empty, there are those of us who are known to be impulsive and some who are overly cautious.
This is top of mind today because I often find myself wrestling with this as I think about what to write about in each week’s Monday Love! You see, it would be so easy for me to rant and rave about politics, or the state of the world, or current events, using my soapbox here to try to impress my opinions upon you.
But I would be starting out with an assumption, and ignoring my vision and intention for these Monday Love emails that go out to my list and become permanent posts on the Conscious Dancer blog. They are meant to be more or less timeless, (‘evergreen’ is the term in publisher’s jargon), although I do acknowledge the occasional holiday, seasonal landmark, or spectacular event.
My goal is that these notes are uplifting in some way or another, and that they might contain a bit of universal life wisdom that could be valuable to anyone. There’s a slight presupposition that most of my readers are somehow interested in dance, movement, or mind-body fitness in some way, and that questions of consciousness hold some appeal. Trends in technology or broad questions of social evolution are fair game for my topics, since these touch everyone’s lives, and insight into our shared world can be valuable.
But if I were to assume that all of you readers are ‘like-minded’ this newsletter would veer off the rails right away. How do I know if you share my passion for the rule-of-law and the value of our Constitution? Democracy is important to me, but is this the place for that conversation? Issues like creeping fascism, gun control, environmental protection, or election integrity are vitally important to me, but for all I know some of my readers might be card carrying conservatives who watch Fox News religiously and think the US government is finally on the right track.
That doesn’t mean we can’t have different opinions and all be nice people who love to dance! (Regardless of your political orientation, I do encourage you to exercise your right to participate in the process and vote!)
It just means that there’s a time and a place for everything, and that it’s ok to keep different kinds of conversations in their appropriate venues. When it comes to politics, current events, and the news behind the news, I stay well-informed, active, and optimistic by keeping up with reputable citizen journalists and public figures who I respect. In the Twitter-verse the news cycle is measured in milliseconds! (If that sort of conversation is of interest to you, follow me on Twitter @markmetz)
Every now and then something will happen that makes me circle back to The Four Agreements and say, “Oops, missed one!” There’s a reason the ‘Unsend Button‘ that you can add to your Gmail account comes in so handy at times! I found myself wishing I had used it recently when I fired off an email to a promoter whose organization had booked me, only to reverse the invitation, which put them on the receiving end of my ire.
My vocal teeth-gnashing boomeranged back on me, and I found myself doing damage control in order to rescue my long-term reputation with the group at large. At the time of my reply, I didn’t have all the facts in hand, and hadn’t realized who all was involved in their decision making process, or any of the other factors involved. Making assumptions, taking things personally, being careless with words, and doing less than the best is always a recipe for trouble.
So I guess the lesson learned is to first and foremost keep your vision and intention in mind and don’t let the granular details cloud your view of the bigger picture. We dance with decisions and opportunities every moment of the day and as long as we’re clear about our overarching goals and the direction we’re consciously headed it’s fine to “strike while the iron is hot.”
Staying in the flow is the key to keeping your consciousness spiraling upward through life. When you stay in balance with love and kindness and “know when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em” you’ll steer a clear path on the road to fulfillment!
Much love and happy dancing till next week!
M+
Mark Metz
Director of the Dance First Association
Publisher of Conscious Dancer Magazine
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DANCE FIRST MEDIA PARTNER SPOTLIGHT – BELOVED FESTIVAL!
This week’s Monday Love Media Partner Spotlight shines on theBELOVED SACRED ART, MOVEMENT, & MUSIC FESTIVALhappening August 10-13 in Tidewater, Oregon.
And guess what, WE’RE GIVING AWAY A PAIR OF TICKETS!!!That’s right, enter now and tell your friends, this is your chance to score a pair of FREE PASSES to one of the most epic festivals on the West Coast!
BELOVED has the highest rating and most well-loved reputation of any gathering on the summer circuit, and deservedly so! Here’s some of the reasons festival fans give it such high marks.
For one, the setting is epic. Oregon in the summer is green and luscious, and BELOVED is in a verdant coastal rainforest with cool glades and sunny meadows, with plenty of shade for camping away from your car and under the trees.
Another reason is that it’s not too big. The organizers intentionally keep the crowd size manageable, so you’re not lost in a sea of tens of thousands of people. It attracts the most devoted fans of stellar music, organic food, conscious dance and movement, and yoga.
It’s kid friendly! Ample opportunities for the young ones to frolic, and an all-around fam-friendly that welcomes your inner child and real kids too.
There’s no FOMO! Fear Of Missing Out is not a problem atBELOVED because the music programming is curated to flow through all the moods and textures appropriate to the time of day and energy levels on one main stage. So you’re never forced to make a choice in missing a band you’re curious about while your DJ friend is playing in a tent somewhere. Music starts at noon on Friday, and runs until midnight on Sunday.
A stellar lineup of classes, workshops, and learning opportunities! You can do yoga, study permaculture, create raw food, play connection games, share your somatic practice, show off your costumes, make art, meditate, sing, play drums, juggle, do action theatre, and plenty more. The opportunities to engage and involve yourself are endless!
Expect a world class collection of entertainment on the main stage, from ethnic dancers and performers from around the world to today’s hottest electronic dance music producers and DJ’s. There’s a wide variety of live music, and plenty of cutting edge electronica to balance it out.
What more can we say! The food is awesome, the vendors are irresistible, the crowd is conscious, the atmosphere is elevated. Experience this next level gathering and WIN A PAIR OF TICKETSfor you and a friend!
BELOVED always sells out, so we recommend that you go ahead and enter the contest, but buy your tickets asap as well. That way if you win the free passes, you can always sell the ones you bought, and you won’t be left scrambling at the last minute.
So tell your friends about the contest, and make your plans forBELOVED right away!
BELOVED SACRED ART, MOVEMENT, & MUSIC FESTIVAL
August 10-13, Tidewater, Oregon.
ENTER HERE FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN A PAIR OF FREE PASSES TO BELOVED!
