Dancing has been a way to express myself for years. It is my way of venting without ever having to actually speak the words. I can let the “floodgates” go and leave everything on the floor. Every day after school I was rushing to get to the studio. I lived to be there and wanted more than anything to spend every minute of my day working to make myself better.

I can remember how every person in the studio expected more of me than anyone else there because my mom owned it. What many of those parents and instructors did not understand is that I pushed myself every single day and I was constantly working at home and in the studio so I could work my way up to the senior company. I wanted to be the best so bad and I knew that if I did not push myself, I would never be the best.

My week was always packed with classes, time at the studio, and competitions. Every weekend we were competing. Most weekends were normal, but in the last year of my time on competition team, I made the best performance of my life. The feeling on stage was like Christmas morning times ten. The normal pre-performance jitters were gone. As soon as I stepped on that stage I felt weightless and unstoppable. I left every bit of emotion on the stage and knew it was the best feeling of my life. The feeling of being free and weightless is something that rarely happens, but when I am dancing I feel it.

Because of this outlet, I have been able to pull myself out of emotional ruts and be able to keep myself composed during emotionally trying situations. Dancing has always been my favorite way for expression. I do not dance like I used to, but it is a way for me to “vent” when I need it. Having that experience early in my life shaped how I think of emotional situations and how I should deal with them. It has helped me through some of the toughest things in my life and kept me from having a meltdown or being unable to deal with it.