Dance your blues away!
Whew, what a day! And it's only half 2 (sorry, that’s the South African way of saying 2:30). Got up and worked on the website I’m designing for class, went to play practice for the Albert Luthuli school, went to dance class, went to a group meeting, and am now back “studying.” The stories are endless, every day I spend here. The kids at the school, besides being adorable, say the silliest things sometimes. Today the girls (in between twirling their umbrellas for me and showing me how they “shake it” in their hippo dance) decided my voice sounds like a nursery rhyme because of my accent. One of them also told my friend with a nose ring that she was wearing her earring in the wrong place. Ha ha. Kids are so cute and their traditional songs are so, so sweet.
It was boiling today in dance class though, whew! But I re-learned the word “inqolo” (I can almost do the click that goes in that word...), Zulu for “shake your backside”! We were learning the fish dance and jumping around for about an hour; we were all dripping by the end of class. And, my classmates taught me how to do this one handed noise- making thing. I’m still getting there. Ha ha…but they are all so much fun, and of everything I’ve done here, being in that class has been consistently such a “jal”! (Oh, that’s Afrikaans for “party”) Honestly, being here I've found a few things to be universal: smiles, laughing, music, and dance. No matter where I am, dancing makes me happy, and no matter who you are, if you dance with people, they are much more likely to take you in as one of their own. Maybe a white one -- but one of their own. It’s kinda funny to be the token white girl in the dance ensemble, but I can't say I'm not loving it! People are still shocked to see, “the white girl’s got rhythm!” but my classmates are always saying, “yeah, you bet she can dance!” They rock! Here’s my tip for anyone studying abroad that is lonely, or homesick, or in need of a pick-me-up: GET OUT THERE AND DANCE!
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