Monday, July 1, 2013

Vantage Point

The view from our condo isn't usually very exciting.  Lots of buildings, lots of road, and no CN Tower.

I'll let you in on a secret though - every Canada Day, we can see up to SIX municipal firework displays from our windows.    We just finished watching a fifteen minute firework extravaganza - some near, some far, all amazing - in the night sky above the glittering lights of the city.

Our surprisingly spectacular vantage point makes us think about Tango.

On the surface, it looks like there's not much you can see when you're dancing.  You, me and the music.  With eyes closed, it's down to listening and feeling.

Usually if you are busy, time flies by.  Tango keeps us busy - but we feel that Tango has slowed time down!  It's been ten years - but it feels like twenty.  It's like we've already seen and lived through several lifetimes of experiences.

Who were we then, the newbies taking our first steps in Tango?  We became less ignorant dancers, more experienced dancers, better dancers. We got to know Toronto much better by traveling to milongas in different parts of the city.  Some milongas stayed where they were, some have moved or closed down.  We've made friends in Tango - friends who became closer to us than family.  We also had friends who became jealous of us and turned into our enemies.  We've seen people fall in and out of love in Tango.  We've seen some dancers evolve, and some dancers stay exactly the same.  Some of the people we danced with then are still dancing now, or they may have moved on to something else.  A few people we knew have died.  A few people we know had babies.  Some dancers lost weight, some gained weight, some got more gray hair and more wrinkles, some always look beautiful as time passes.  On some days there's drama, and on some days everyone is just dancing as usual. Though some faces remain the same, it's like every few years it's a different crowd.  The stories that have unfolded in this little world keep on repeating.  It's always interesting.  You can write a library of books based on all the things that have happened.

We got ten years older - but we feel younger than ever!

Tango may seem this little insignificant thing...who knew, a bit of embrace and a little compas gave us a great view of Life.

Happy Canada Day to everyone!




2 comments:

Tango Salon Adelaide said...

"Tango may seem this little insignificant thing...who knew, a bit of embrace and a little compas gave us a great view of Life."

You're absolutely right! Like you, 15 years of tango has brought us invaluable experiences and immeasurable personal benefits.

From time to time some thoughtful souls in our antipodean tango community also remind us what an enormous benefit tango has had in bringing people together and fostering a very real sense of connectedness.

We are indeed fortunate that tango found us.

Patricia

Irene and Man Yung said...

Dear Patricia,

Every day the thought of having Tango in our lives brings us so much joy! We agree with you completely!

Thanks for your comment,

Irene and Man Yung