This month we celebrate women's history month. Justin's story honor's the women in his life so we honor him. He is a force to be reckoned with and a blessing to all who witness him dance. I am inspired by his story but more so by his desire and passion to heal. Be blessed.
Still, I dance! And I dance! AND I DANCE!
by Justin Melvin
As all things are filled with my soul, you emerge from the things filled with my soul.
You are like my soul. A butterfly in a dream… (Pablo Neruda)
Like the air I breathe, dance has always been a life-giving, life-sustaining force. It builds meaning right from thin air. Some say I have this gift of dance, but I understand above all that I have been blessed and given this precious gift that is connected to my heart. I dance because… I Must.
More than fifteen years ago, I danced because my mother forced me to take a hip-hop dance class that I quickly came to love. Then, the years of commitment and hard work produced Showtime at the Apollo, ABT Bermuda, full four-year scholarship to college, getting my BFA in dance, teaching at the Joffrey Ballet School, performing with the Mark Morris Dance Group and Jose Limon Dance Company, dancing at City Center, and making my debut on the Metropolitan Opera House stage.
Yet, it is difficult today to understand the phrase “I dance because” while in the midst of circumstances. Pain has a tendency to influence the mind to ignore faith. I dance even when I feel the pain, knowing there is something to gain. In 2009, my grandmother passed away after a very long battle with Alzheimer’s tearing me apart and, a year later, my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer soon after my college graduation. The saying is that there is a reason for the season. Everyday, I pray the pain and struggle away for my mother and any other life that requires healing beyond medicine. What do I do when I feel like I am losing the women who I let hold my heart?
Still, I dance! And I dance! AND I DANCE! Dance through the fear; dance for hope; dance in honor of their strength; dance to communicate. It does what words and medicine cannot do and even what they can, in a much more emotionally touching, meaningful, moving, and visceral way. I move with all heart to invite others to connect emotionally and mentally to human experience rather than simple steps and beautiful tricks.
Where I cannot cure with my hands, I value how my passion allows artistic expression to touch and identify with others: direct, connective, playful, imaginative, cooperative, intimately, and emotionally. Art can be understood as a window into the soul and contains pieces of us that make us feel fulfilled and whole. It gives of us hope and it has the power to heal. And if dance will continue to heal, then I will dance forever for my mother. I will dance for love. I dance because its power will never lose…
Spotlight
Photos by Norman DeShong http://www.ndeshong.com/
