From the Dance Floor to the World

The Contagious Power of Joy

A few weeks back, I celebrated the arrival of this sweet season the best way I know how… with dance, of course! My wonderful student and our dear classmate Nanako-san generously organized her Spring Zumba party for us fellow dance lovers.

It was such a beautiful gathering, but especially meaningful to me because I got the chance to share the stage with the instructor who trained me to become a Zumba instructor, too. George Iu, an incredibly talented Zumba Education Specialist, flew in from Hong Kong just for the event. Talk about a full circle moment for me to celebrate Zumba’s 25th anniversary!

With the support and amazing hospitality of Nanako, who originally hails from Japan, and led by me and fellow instructor and powerhouse Tamás from Hungary, our enthusiastic crew danced and partied it up the entire afternoon.

When it finally came time for the cooldown, I felt a gentle and emotional shift in energy. Tamás led us in Michael Jackson's "Heal the World," truthfully a song I’ve usually skipped over. But on this day, and perhaps in light of these times, the message struck a deep chord.

Looking at all the faces in front of me and knowing there were different backgrounds, cultures, languages, and ages all around us moved me deeply. I sang loudly along and had to hold back the tears that began to mix with the sweat running into my eyes!

All month we have been talking about “Springing into Joy.” We have talked about finding what lights us up and using it to bring about better wellness for ourselves. But that afternoon was a vivid reminder that certainly wellbeing and thriving don’t happen solely on our own. It happens with others.

Joy is contagious. It inspires others. It sings loud enough for others to hear and echoes its laughter into the hearts of everyone around.

It also brought back memories of my freshman year of university in NYC. For one of our final projects, my Jesuit theology professor gave us clear instructions: "Find something you care about, something you believe is important in making the world better, and go out and do it." 

We all took different paths. I volunteered my time tutoring and playing with kids after school, someone collected eyeglasses to donate to a temporary housing shelter, and another joined peaceful anti-war demonstrations.

🎵 “Heal the world, make it a better place”— this can look so many different ways. Similarly, what sparks joy in each one of us and what our unique path to wellbeing looks like also varies.

We can always start with ourselves. When we nurture what helps us thrive, we build a joy that makes a difference to us and has the ability to echo out to the rest of the world.

It might start with us clapping in time to the music, supercharging our bodies with energy and a dose of optimism. But it sends people away from class just a bit more patient, a little less stressed, and maybe even a little kinder when they reach their homes, their offices, or the MRT carriage crowded with strangers.

If the place where you find that spark of joy is the dance floor, come help ignite one another and carry it out of class into the world this week!

Keep moving!

xx,

Katie