Yes, it happened when I was eleven years old.  I changed dramatically after discovering something.  What was it?  Can you guess?  It “was dance”!

Dance changed everything in me.  I could build up my confidence and take part in everything, much more than before.  Dance continues to inspire me to reach for new goals.

Why did I start to dance?  It was a coincidence.  I watched a video that showed my friend dancing at a concert.  Wow!  It was wonderful!  It’s an amazing new world: gorgeous stage, colorful lights, men and women, young and old.  Lots of dancers were enjoying themselves.  I stared at the video.  And I thought, “I’d love to dance like that!”  In no time at all, I carried out my plan.

I’ve met many people since I started dancing.  Through our very demanding dance lessons, we can naturally build up relationships where we support, stimulate and respect each other.

And I also met a wonderful woman, my dance teacher, Hiroko.  She taught me the fun of dancing.  She doesn’t only teach the art of dancing, but many other things: how important it is to keep doing something without giving up, how wonderful it is when we reach our goals, and how enjoyable it is to create something ourselves.  She gives me all these wonderful things.  She is the one I respect the most.

Five years have already passed.  I still cannot dance very well.  But I won’t give up.  Why not?  Because my dancing self is the self I like best.  At school, I sometimes fit into a stereotype that my friends have of me.  Nobody thinks that I make mistakes.  But I do.  Almost everyone thinks I can do everything.  But I definitely can’t.  When I’m dancing, I can be who I am.  I don’t need to be a stereotype of a perfect girl.  Sometimes I make mistakes.  Sometimes I’m stupid. My dance friends accept me and everything I do.  I can be who I want to be.  I think I can be much more alive this way.  And this is the “me” I love best.

Dance!  It gave me a lot of things: confidence, guts, willingness to challenge myself, to push my limits.  I believe these things will make me a more attractive and independent person in the future.  I can’t imagine my life without dance.  So, I want to keep dancing, even when I become an old woman. Dance!  It made me come alive.  It’s my life.