Dance, Dance, Revolution

My first ever Lesotho dance lesson brought tears to my eyes! About 50 girls attended the class, ranging from ages 6-16, or higher. I knew right away that the next session was going to have to be divided by age groups. One day a week for the older girls, and one day for the younger ones.
Dance in Lesotho is much different than the dancing I know how to teach, clearly. In order to give the girls a vague idea of what we were going to learn I showed them the "Halo" dance from Glee. So, there we were, 50 girls crammed into a teeny-tiny, sweltering hot church. I busted out my tiny little computer and told them to, "just watch". They were undoubtedly curious and confused as to what they were about to see. However, as soon as the song started and those girls on the screen, all dressed in their yellow dresses, started dancing the b0-ausi gathered as close to the computer as they could get. The amazement in their eyes brought tears to mine!
After the clip we started with some VERY simple technique. We started with plie's (plee-ays) in first and second position. I thought they'd hate it, but they really tried, and seemed to love it! We did some other simple warm-ups, stretching, across the floor routines, and then finished with each different grade level standing up to perform "step touches" that we'd learned during the warm up. The moves were about as simple as I could make them, and they will continue to be. Dancing here in Lesotho is vastly different than your typical American dance class, as you can imagine. The simple idea of standing on, or pointing their toes blows them away. However, the excitement, pride, and happiness I was able to see in their faces made me feel better than I have in a long time.
I don't believe for a second that this is a "sustainable" project, which is what we strive for as Peace Corps volunteers. However, I don't really care either. I know these girls are comfortable and having fun, and that's all that matters to me. If I can build up self confidence in even a few of them I will feel accomplished! Of course I've got lofty dreams of what this could turn into, but I'll be happy with spending a few hours a week making these young ladies feel valued! I'll do my best to keep the blog posted on our progress.

"I get up. I walk. I fall down. Meanwhile I keep dancing"

The quote above is from a card sent to me from my very special friend Sammy. The words hold very true to my recent days here in Lesotho. Yesterday was Thomas Maresco Jr's birthday. Knowing that the date was coming up, and only a day after Vday was difficult. I tried to honor him in the best ways that I could. I made some delicious food. He would've been very proud of this, as he was the best cook in Lesotho, and I'm deffinitely not known for my culinary skills. I allowed my IPOD to play through the songs that I normally would skip in order to avoid the sad thoughts. I "felt the feelings" as I've been advised to do. February 15th was, and will forever be, a difficult day for everyone who knew him. My heart goes out to all of his family and friends!!!
Today is a new day and the sun is shining. Yesterday I may've "fallen down" a few times. But today I'm up and dancing...literally. This afternoon will be my first ever Lesotho dance lesson. I've invited b0-ausi (girls of all ages) from the village to join me in the church building after school for dance class. I'm assuming a BUNCH of them will come this first day. They will probably be dissapointed when I start with technique and simple steps. This is sort of what I'm going for. I want the group to dwindle down to only those girls who are serious about being there. I hope to have 10-20 girls who come once, or maybe twice weekly. I look forward to seeing what will play out. You can never really tell!
As promised, numerous times, I'm making an honest effort to keep up on my blog this year. My camera unfortunately is not working, so pictures will be limited. I will do my best to keep up on the narration though. Thank you to the readers who haven't given up on me :)
Khotso (Peace)
Haley