Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Law Students Blogs -> [ Useless Dicta ]

Law Students

: [ Useless Dicta ]

To the Pointe

When I was 4 years old my mom put me in a ballet/tap combo class for one hour every week. I immediately fell in love with the ballet part of it and have been dancing ever since. All through high school I was pretty serious about it, I did at least 3 hours of class a week and did the whole pointe shoe thing, but once college rolled around I didn't have time to make it to my regular studio and never really did find a studio near Useless University that I loved, so I stopped dancing on a regular basis. I picked up ballet classes again at my regular studio when law school started 3 years ago, but with the crazy schedule that I've had this past year I haven't been to a class in about 9 months.....

Until tonight :-)

I am sore all over and exhausted as all heck, but damn I feel good!!! Ballet seriously might just be the best workout on the planet. I've tried some of the more "trendy" workout things, yoga, zumba, etc., and while I enjoy yoga nothing beats a fabulous ballet class. I can relax, stretch, work up a sweat, and clear my head of all that BarBri nonsense that has been ruling my life these days.

I tried a new studio for tonight's class, my usual studio doesn't have a regular schedule in the summer because of the annual recital at the end of July. I'm always a little hesitant to try a new studio, I'm usually worried that I'm not going to like it, that the instructor won't be great, that not knowing anyone in the class will be awkward, that I won't be able to keep up, etc. But I went ahead and did it anyways.

Much to my surprise and joy the instructor gave the first warm up exercise and then put on the music for us and it just happened to be the CD that my most beloved late ballet teacher composed (and also plays the piano on). I mentioned to the instructor at the end of the class that I was trained by the woman who composed and performed the CD she had used all through class and the instructor was surprised to learn that the CD was by someone local. She commented that it was the first ballet CD that she can use for all levels, including her little kids, and that she had no idea who the composer was but decided very quickly after listening to it for the first time that she is brilliant. And that's the point at which I could feel the warm tinge of almost tears creeping into my eyes. Because she was brilliant. A brilliant dancer, former prima ballerina, musician, and composer. But beyond that she was absolutely the best teacher and mentor I have ever had at any point in my life and she was just a wonderful down to earth person who absolutely loved each new day that life brought her. She's been gone for almost four years now, but I still consider her to be one of the most important influences in my life. I was reminded this evening that I am so lucky because I had the privilege to know her and study with her for seven fabulous years, it's truly sad that it couldn't have been more.

Full post as published by [ Useless Dicta ] on June 04, 2009 (boomark / email).