Recently I had the opportunity to participate in a dance for a school organization event on campus. While this seemed exciting I was extremely hesitant as I didn’t believe that I was “built” to dance. I was very nervous going into the first practice because I knew that there was going to be a clear distinction between my size and the other girl’s size. However, I knew I wanted to participate as this is my last semester and I wanted to do something that was out of my comfort zone. The first practice went really well and I was caught off guard. All the girls that I would be dancing with were really nice and helpful when going over the dance moves. Going to these dance practices really made me feel better about myself and my body. During these practices I noticed how much work it really was to dance for even a minute straight. I became more aware of my movements and my environment in a good way. Learning to position myself in different places and finding different ways to dance to a certain lyric was very fun for me. Another thing about me is that I dislike public speaking, even presenting in class is a big barrier for me. I get really nervous and tend to mess up a lot, so cue to event day, I remember not being nervous at all when I was about to perform in front of 200+ people. I was shocked at myself too because usually I would be jittery or trying to back out at the last minute. The actual performance was a blur for me but all I know is that I did my best and I felt really good about myself. Becoming more aware of my surroundings reminded me of “As the Earth Dances” by Kimerer LaMothe “Insofar as dancing can educate people’s sensory awareness to their own movement as the movement of nature within them…” I related to this as I was very aware of my own environment during practice and during the actual performance. Overall, I am really glad I did this before I graduated and had fun doing it!