There are many reasons why I wanted to share this video that shows how much work it is to be a professional dancer.

I am sorry that I am living in Dickinson, North Dakota.  One of the bad things about Dickinson, is that the women here don’t have discipline, a good work ethic, self-awareness, an understanding of their body, poise, grace, forbearance (patient self-control), and an appreciation for beauty.  For young women, dance classes can teach all of these things.

If dance classes are done correctly, all of the students must show up on time.  They must dress uniformly in almost identical leotards.  They must shut up, keep quiet, and listen to instruction.  There is warm-up and stretching, followed by exercises, which are difficult and must be performed accurately to the standard.

The showing up on time, keeping quiet, and performing difficult exercises accurately, this requires and teaches discipline.  The warm-up, stretching, and difficult exercises, this gives women self-awareness and an understanding of their body.

From the instructor pointing it out to them, the students seeing themselves in the mirror, and seeing other women perform the exercises accurately, women can come to understand the difference between hanging their head down and keeping their head erect;  controlling their arms or letting their arms flap aimlessly; letting their belly sag or having a tight stomach; stomping around flat-footed or stepping lightly;  being off-balance or being centered.

Most young women who take dance classes begin to understand the difference between trying hard and not trying, paying attention and not paying attention, learning something and not learning it, looking poised or looking like a pig, moving gracefully or moving like a cow.  Most young women seek to improve and do better.

Often young women find a whole new awareness of themselves, their bodies, what they are capable of, what they look like in comparison to others or the ideal figure, what they need to work on, what they would like to improve, and a purpose to work for completely apart from food, clothes, gossip, boys, fitting-in, and that purpose is themselves and improving themselves.

In this video, this young professional dancer shows her daily routine, where she wakes up at 6:30 a.m., goes to yoga class at 6:45 a.m., begins her dance classes and rehearsals at 9:30 a.m, finishes her dance classes and rehearsals at 5:00 p.m., then she begins getting into makeup for her nightly performance at 6:30 p.m.

Most of the women in Dickinson don’t even shower or get dressed in the morning, they just roll out of bed in their sweatpants, get in their Chevy or Pontiac with a cigarette hanging out of their mouth, waddle across the parking lot at their job with their arms flapping like whale flippers, and then scowl and sneer at people trying to look ugly, tossing their head and gnashing their teeth menacingly like a wild boar, because that is what they were taught.