Thursday, April 06, 2006

Why I Bounce

Okay, so here's a little essay about why I bounce. I've edited it a bit since this isn't an adult only blog....and I have this little tiny issue about consent. Even some adults don't need to know about other aspects of my life:D
Those that know me know that I bounce. Why do I bounce? Well that's a good question I've asked myself during non-bouncy moments. I haven't always been bouncy. I don't even jump rope very well. I virtually never bounced as a kid; not that I can recall, anyhow. I didn't bounce when I was with Kim (my soulmate), although I was in a euphoric state most of the time with Him. Bouncing didn't come around til after He died. As near as I can tell, I started bouncing a little less than a year after Kim died. In fact, a few friends might even remember a time when I when I didn't bounce...if they think hard enough; I know I've had to think about it!
I look at bouncing as a very spiritual aspect of me. Some people sing, some dance, some preach their love of God. I bounce. It seems to start somewhere deep in the earth...some sort of energy burst that enters my feet and then jets through me until I need to bounce. It's a reflection of my joy with life...it's a form of communion with the universe and everything that has formed me into who I am. For the brief moment when my feet don't touch the ground, I am embraced by the universe and all that created me. It's a euphoric, wonderful feeling that that combines spirituality and worship with natural movement, pleasure. Bouncing for me is part of joining the universe and embracing the very essence of life. Life is exuberance and joy and knowledge. Somehow simply bouncing reminds me about why I live and love and feel pain.I notice every so often others will bounce with me. That's an amazing feeling...it's wonderful to feel the ecstatic movement of more than a solitary bounce. I always encourage bouncing. It seems like a childish action; happy kids bounce quite a bit. I love that kid energy and feeling the bounciness that kids take for granted...I don't think they realize what a beautiful, spiritual movement it is and how when they bounce the universe reverberates and answers with passion.
For me bouncing is an integral part of the play process (something adults don't do enough of). When I'm playing, I'm having fun. When I'm having fun, I am grateful for the opportunity to feel pleasure, love, friendship-- a lot of the things I didn't feel very often as a kid. I feel joy and so I bounce. Bouncing brings people together and unites us as a community in a memorable event. We laugh and in our laughter we commune and let others see us as playful humans more than "serious adults."
I tried to fight the nickname Bouncy, but it has stuck and it's obviously appropriate and infinitely more acceptable than Tigger (I'm not the feline sort of person). What's important is my friends have given me that nickname and who am I to object to something that describes a movement that is so fundamental to who I am in the universe?There you have it. The Tao of Bounce by Laurie.

Soooooooo We're in April now

Wow...I can't believe people are reading this blog! I've kind of let it die like my fantastic get healthy plan! Well...I guess I need to reassess things a bit.
I've been so busy with other things lately (major creative energy), that I feel my time is better spent doing that than exercising.
So what am I going to do?
Put weights sort of on the back burner.
I fashioned a belly dance hip belt out of some chain I had laying around. It weighs around 8 pounds. One of the belly dance gurus online sells weighted hip scarves for around fifty + bucks. Needless to say, I don't have that kind of money! Supposedly, adding weights like this will help tone and improve various dance movements. When I practice at home, I'll strap that puppy on and shimmy a lot and pretend I'm old Jacob Marley...I sure feel like that with all the clanking chain!
I'm also really, tempted to get Yoga for Round Bodies. Flexibility is something that would help me out a lot in my dancing...and other more interesting aspects of my life;)
Another thing I'm going to attempt to do is get my mini trampoline out and start bouncing again. Some people think it helps the lymphatic system. I just think that bouncing is a joyful, spiritual expression we somehow lose sight of as we get older. I bounce fairly regularly, just not on my mini trampoline (oh and the new term for it is rebounding).
Maybe I'll have to post about why I bounce on this blog.