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Dance

Photo by Drew Colins on Unsplash  


In 6th grade,
a group of girls 
refused to take me in 
for an intra-school group dance competition,
some thought I didn't look good enough to be on stage,
some thought I didn't dance well enough to be on stage,
they danced for Aaja Nachle,
the irony of it all.
I have no hatred for any of those girls,
I don't even remember most of them,
they did only what they knew,
the problem with that incident 
especially at the age of 11 or 12,
is that I was never angry with them 
as much as I was with myself 
for not being good enough.
Today is international dance day,
so much has changed since then,
dance has meant a lot of things over the years to me,
so this is to remind you 
that the stage will never define what it is to move your body to the rhythm of your soul,
to feel sweat dripping down your elbows,
so this is for you 
who dances in the shower,
who dances in your bedroom,
who dances on a friday night with a closed of group of friends,
who can break into a dance in the middle of a debate,
this is for you 
to hold your body like an abode of all the gods that have names and all those that don't, 
and swing your arms into this universe 
without a knot in the center of your stomach,
this for your 
feet that taps,
hands that drum,
heads that nod,
and goes unnoticed,
this is for you 
who dances like the wind,
and tell me 
who can ask the wind 
to not move?
Happy international dance day to you.
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