My daughter Amy has many talents. She is an incredible jewelry maker (insert Flickr link), she works a day job with a green architectural firm, and most recently she has taken up belly dancing. She likens the feeling she gets with the feeling she had as a little girl spinning around in her twirly skirts. But like many of us, as Amy grew up, she was very conscious of the way she looked. As an antidote, she says: "In many ways I was fearless - I expressed myself through my clothing and makeup in ways that made my parents cringe - not because I was wearing something too short or too low-cut, but because I wore things that they knew would get me teased at best and potentially picked on and beat up at worst." (Note: she looked a lot like Cyndi Lauper.)
That phase being past, Amy went on living her many faceted life and grew to a beautiful young woman who could put a look together in a way that I have always envied. Then she discovered belly dancing. Says Amy, " Belly dancing from the very beginning freed something deep within me. At moments, while watching myself in the studio mirror, I lost that judgment of myself...and saw something deeper in my reflection: my body as a vessel for my being (soul, consciousness...) and an outlet of expression of self-love, beauty (within and without), joy and grace."
Being too self-conscious as a young woman to dance in front of anyone, because of the freedom belly dancing gave her, recently, at a wedding she danced "without fear," I danced without thought of how people thought I looked, whether I was being perceived as "fat" or "attractive" or "stupid looking. I danced without fear. It was wonderful. Plus I get to play dress up!"
