Energy

Heaven is a beautiful ballet adagio. Earth is bowling a 40. I did both tonight!

The longer I dance ballet, the more I believe that energy is a palpable thing. On the surface, dancing seems to be purely about controlling and manipulating various parts of the physical human body. The part that we don't see, however, is the control and manipulation of energy. Striking a pose and striking a pose with energy could mean the difference between losing and keeping one's balance. As well, the way the dancer chooses to direct his or her energy could mean the difference between a captivating style and a distasteful one. Dancing ballet is as much about containing and releasing at will this invisible energy as it is about moving and positioning the visible body.

The longer I live, the more I believe that energy is a palpable thing. I am most convinced of this truth when I share a deep, private connection with another human being. What has become of me? I speak of Providence, purpose, and now energy. I swear I still have one foot in the real, rational world.

It's true that the province of ballet is in the air, but there's no doubt that it comes from the province of the ground.-- Kip, in critiquing our manner of jumping like marionettes with no solidity in landings. And in fact, to emphasize the point with a demonstration, he did dance like a marionette for us.