My first real dance experience was Earthdance - a fantastic weekend led by Catherine -of dance and song and sweatlodge and hangi…dancing in the caves by the lake…sitting in the hot river…walking up Mt Tauhara and gazing at her pregnant (like me) shape from the hilltop….walking in the bush and sitting among the rocks…connecting with the earth and connecting with a whole lot of places within me …

It blew my mind!

After experiencing this I was desperate for more… but the group in Wellington (led by Janine) had no musicians and I missed the energy of the guitars and drums…so…reluctantly…I found an old guitar and remembered a few chords I had learned as a child…sat in the middle and struggled to overcome my shyness…

The next few years were measured in Earthdances...

...then Andrew began dancing at his farm on the Kapiti Coast where I was occasionally nudged to lead a dance and also began to play drum…the group there was keen and many of us were devastated when after a few years he decided to stop leading dances…

Narayan had led a wonderful retreat at Andrew’s farm which gave me the first inkling of an idea that I might have something to offer as a leader of dances.

Even so…a year went by and a group of us were sitting in the hot river on the way home from Mana wishing for some local dances… and before too long I found myself playing guitar again as a group of us met at Raumati to dance…I didn’t need to lead as we all knew the dances…but at some stage some new people started coming and I realized with a shock that I might need to tell them what to do!

So I asked Catherine to be my mentor and before too long Shafia began a dance leader training…since I was now leading dances I thought perhaps I had better learn a little about how to do it!

The Dance training was challenging for me in that we needed to make a commitment to the full 3 years… I was always struggling to just get to dance weekends by the skin of my teeth…juggling young children and lack of money...and being phobic about commitment!

However this was one of the biggest learnings for me…having committed to being there the questions shifted from ‘can I…or can’t I?’ to…’how can I do it?’ Having removed the ‘I can’t’ as an option I found that I was able to do whatever needed doing to enable me to be there.

Much to my surprise becoming certified as a dance leader felt like the beginning of the path…not the end of it…

Since then Prem (and Sally) invited me to join in leading ‘Spirit and Nature’ retreats at Waihoanga (Otaki Gorge)… these weekends have been a journey in themselves…each one seems to contain the ones before… and deepen my connection with the earth, the river, the trees, the sky….and friendships with the many beloveds who have joined us on the way.

These weekends have also enabled me to explore ideas which have unfolded for me through my art, and through being a student at a marae…I fell in love with the creation stories of the maori people, with Ranginui (Sky Father) and Papatuanuku (Earth Mother)… Spirit and Nature!

So imagine my delight when Shafia suggested we co-create a weekend around Maori Spirituality and the Dances…and Tihei Mauri Ora came to life at Sharda last year (2008)… (to be expanded upon this November 2009.)

The dances have led me on unexpected journeys…to Vermont and to Australia…as I was deeply inspired by the visit of Radha and Alima to NZ and their teachings on the subject of ‘I can!’

Dance Camp has become a ‘must-do’ for me as I love the opportunity for big circles with more musicians - so much fun and I love being able to co-create and dance with people from far and wide… and hang out by the river and play drums and live in community for a week.

Although I keep thinking I’d like to stay home in January sometime we have also had a succession of magical retreats at Mana which I’m very thankful I have been able to attend – it’s so nice to deepen into the retreat space after the busyness of Dance Camp.

On a smaller scale closer to home I love to have evenings of zikr (with a shared meal) at my home…a real potluck…as I never know who will come or what they will bring…but it’s always delicious! (and my chance to both dance and stay home!)

I’m also lucky to have had Eila nearby sharing the Sufi Healing Service in a warm and wonderful way each Tuesday, so this has become a big part of my journey too.

Much to my surprise (I have never been one for meetings) the Visioning Weekends have also become a highlight of my year – its wonderful to have time for all those conversations at last, and to deepen my thoughts on many subjects around the dances and (to my absolute astonishment) find myself with an interest in taking on jobs within DUPANZ.

So who knows where the dances will lead me next, I’m happy to share dances wherever there is a willing group and have grown into a feeling of belonging to a big and vibrant (if far flung) family…which coincidentally is something I always yearned for as a child.

ya....hu!

Wendy