Friday, June 26, 2009

commitment...

We just had the first day of a professional development retreat for the company... doing some vision building for the future - it was a great day... a lot came up and my mind is racing... now entering into our fifth year as a dance company... yes HALF A DECADE! I am finding myself thinking about what the idea of commitment means really. I have always had a pretty easy time committing and actually enjoy it... my solid eleven year relationship with my husband is definitely an example of that... commitment to me occurs as an opportunity not a hindrance... Commitment as in a way of being. For me it is about integrity, about follow through, about devotion, about being so inspired by someone or something that your obligation fulfills you. In the dictionary definition of the word, you can easily see how, depending on your perspective, it can be something really incredibly liberating and inspiring or something like a ball and chain that stifles you and weighs you down.... it is all in your perspective.

Com-mit-ment; n: Something that takes up time or energy, especially an obligation (an example of the ball and chain perspective)

Devotion or dedication for example to a cause, person or relationship (an example of an inspiring paradigm)

Not to say one is more accurate than the other - but one perspective will have you jumping out of bed in the morning where as the other will have you experiencing your 'commitment' like a chore... and I don't think that any of us ever feel 100% one or the other, but the beauty of being a human being is that we can stop, step back and examine how we are being in our commitments and decide to shift it... we can CREATE being inspired by our commitments. We can find the essence, the root, the context of what originally inspired us about the initial commitment and let that reinvigorate our relationship with it...

I am committed to live in a world where human beings understand their own creative power, treat each other with respect and where everyone has a voice. I deeply believe that dance has the power to create such a world. I am constantly learning more about how to BE with other people through my teaching of partner dancing. I am fascinated with how much we can learn about ourselves - about what is and what isn't working in our life - through dancing with another human being... that partnership is the greatest teacher we will ever know...

I am committed to develop a new genre - Urban Latin Dance Theater - that speaks to the commitments of others - that connects people - that inspires others to speak out and find their creative voice.

I am committed to live a life that inspires.

I am committed to treating the people inside and outside of CONTRA-TIEMPO with love and respect.

I am committed to not be a part of the 'starving artist story' - and to undermine it in my actions and in every part of my being!

I am committed to pushing myself and putting myself in situations where I am challenged physically and artistically.

I am committed to listen and to learn from those around me - to know that everyone has something to share and contribute

I am commited learn and grow for the rest of my life.