Across the Sea

A Goodbye Letter

By Chelsea Visser

This is my last issue with Sheer Dance. By the time this issue comes out, I'll be packing my bags for a semester in Spain. I'm hoping to try my hand at flamenco while I'm there, but who knows what'll be waiting across the ocean?

One of the things that's so incredible about dance is how universal it is. Be it ballroom dance, or some other type of partner dancing, where there's music, there's bound to be dancing.

Something I continue to notice, as my involvement in the dancing community grows and changes, is how I love dancing for its own sake. I always have. I can say with very little hesitation that ballroom has changed my life. I remember waking up some mornings and getting through the day just for the dance lesson I'd have after classes. I've met so many wonderful people, including someone who became my partner both on and off the dance floor.

The competitive sphere isn't for me. The drama and the ever-increasing pressure to be better are things I can't engage with in a way that's healthy for me. But that's OK. I know it's done many good things for so many good people, and I'm glad I had the chance to see that world, if only briefly.

I still love going dancing twice a week and spinning across the floor while laughing when I trip over my own feet. I enjoy nailing that move, and letting the music move through me. I love how dance makes me feel in control of my body, powerful, and beautiful.

I hope I get the chance to keep dancing in Spain, because I never want to forget how much dance has changed me for the better.

I wish the very best for the dance family I'm leaving behind, and the very best for Sheer. Keep growing, keep changing, and keep dancing.