On 44

A year ago today, I wrote about the ultimate birthday gift of Boo moving in and the inspiration that would inevitably come from having a real artist’s studio next to mine. What a wonderful first year of living together it’s been! This man truly inspires me every day — both with his art and with his heart.

But what I’ve learned is that while inspiration can come from Boo or anywhere else, motivation to must come from myself and frankly sometimes it’s just hard to muster.

Later this year I’ll mark the 10 year anniversary of my starting flamenco dancing. I remember thinking a year or two or three in, “Gee, by the time I reach the point of dancing for 10 years, I’m going to be AMAZING!!” Uhhhhh, yeah, not quite. Especially when I’ve taken long breaks in study, and dramatically cut down class attendance and rehearsal time.

It’s not that the love for the dance isn’t there — it is. The challenge for me is finding the motivation to practice even for a few minutes when I’m tired or irritated after work.

Lucky for me we have a show coming up in March, so I MUST practice. Also lucky for me, I live with a man who gets after me ALL THE TIME for not practicing.

But in preparation for the show and trying to get back into the swing of things in my 10th year, I’ve been spending a lot of time on YouTube watching my favorite dancers for ideas and inspiration. I’ll watch something on the computer or phone, then get up and try new steps in my living room. To make this easier for me, Boo got me a Chromecast for my birthday so that I can finally play YouTube on our TV — I know, we were behind the times. But isn’t that sweet of him?

I feel like dancing!

I love how birthdays always pull things into focus for me. Among so many other things, I’m so grateful for this man who takes care of me and always finds ways to nurture and encourage my own artistic dreams. I’m blessed to share a home with him.