“Dear Edie,
I’m just writing to say hello. I will start by saying what I’m sure hundreds of others have already said: in your brilliant writing you make yourself so plainly understood and convey the complex and wonderful joy of the Salsa experience so clearly that it’s hard not to think of you as an old friend. 🙂 <!–more–>
But I will add this. Although I am a man I am a feminist, and although I work with computers for a living I hate browsing the web. I know you have a strong dislike for ‘feminism’ and you are evidently a Web Freak so why is that I find you so marvelous and your work so utterly precious?
Let me deal with the web thing quickly – I don’t really hate the web… I hate browsers and the way they dribble information to the screen. Here is an analogy which I think explains my perspective. Browsing the web is like going to a fine restaurant and ordering an exquisite meal only to find that you are served a mere one or two spoonfuls of food. To eat more you must ask the chef to prepare another portion and eventually you receive another tiny amount to nibble on. And so it continues until you lose your appetite altogether. Why am I telling you this? Because, despite all this, I find your Dancer Hangout web site is a thoroughly enjoyable feast. I am surprised at how much I enjoy wandering through the vast quantities of delectable goodies without a trace of anxiety about the bloody browser. And behind that is the depth of humanity that you bring to your writing. And behind that I’m sure is the sheer magic of this thing called Salsa. Thank you Edie!
And feminism? I agree with everything I have read of your writings on feminism yet for twenty years I have called myself a feminist (much to the annoyance of certain very conservative feminists). But feminism has taken many forms and directions and I don’t consider myself to be agreement with the rather stupid, men hating, varieties. I’ve long recognized and accepted the intelligence that is inherent in the female capacity to feel depth of emotion and the wisdom that stems from the use of intuition (both of which are all too rare in the ‘average’ male).
I call myself a feminist because I happen to believe that women are magic and powerful and would do a heck of a lot better at running the world than the ‘average’ male power monger. I have a number of rather conservative feminist friends who have lost track of their femininity. They are awful to dance with if they even dance at all. They back lead and will not let go of their clinging for control. They have difficulty putting themselves in the arms and the care of a man. It hurts to see them like this and I usually respond by increasing the strength of my lead and trying to reach that part inside them which longs to let go and enjoy the feminine experience. Sometimes I succeed and I see that incredible, ecstatic smile flash across a previously tight and suspicious face.
I dance Salsa largely because I am addicted to that breathtaking, magical smile.
And real Salseras have this smile in vast amounts!
Thank you sisters!
But I am happy to see an emerging brand of feminism which embraces sensuality as well as ‘equality’. In the big picture, I am optimistic that this trend will grow and with it we can help build a more peaceful society. And in Salsa I find there is a beautiful subtlety of logic which escapes certain dogmatic feminists: the Man leads the Woman but it is only to enhance the magic and the beauty and the power that she possesses. Who is really in control here? Surely it is a union of spirits. Thank you Salsa!
I know you must be completely wrapped up in teaching and training your Black Belt Salsa students and instructors (among other things). I too am counting down the minutes to train with you. I must express my appreciation for the work that you have done in making that happen. When (if) you have some free time from all your work, perhaps you might like to read the ‘wordsketch’ below which I wrote to capture a moment from my early Salsa days. It was the moment that I first saw a Salsa competition and I ‘fell in love’ with one of the contestants. It was a real motivation to learn the art of dance as quickly as possible. I hope you enjoy it.
All the best to you!
Mr. Micha B”
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by Mr. Micha B.
I had known of your existence, yet your presence there that night still took me by surprise. You emerged slowly from the shadow of your coat and stepped as if by accident into the spotlight, wearing barely a cloud of sparkling blue about your golden, glowing skin.
I was transfixed – frozen in the irrelevance of my audience chair. What my soul would have given then to be free of its wooden self and to enter the fortunate life of your bedazzled partner.
And to feel the gentle heat of your delicate hands.
And to inhale the atmosphere of your cruel perfume.
The music begins. It pulls you into its pulsing path. You are liquid now and he, your guiding geography. I grasp glimpses of you behind the landscape of dark, tilting heads that are craning stiffly from side to side. A flash here, a glow there. My heart does not beat when you are eclipsed. It dies, repeatedly, with each loss of your exquisite light.
You emerge. He unfolds you through a scintillating whorl of spiral revelations. My eyes, unblinking and sharply fixed, play on every spinning harmony of your glittering self. You turn once more and again you are gone, for yet another eternity.
If only I could stand to take in more but I am, in fact, paralyzed by the very dance which seems to bring me life. Your smile, your limbs, your eyes are all too enchanting for my soul to endure. I am a victim to your mesmerizing gaze which is cast here and there with accomplished innocence into the shadows of the room, not far from where I sit.
And it seems, now, that in briefly knowing your presence, I will be eternally aware of your absence. Salsera, you have become the impossible measure of my life. The pleasure that I feel for your proximity only barely exceeds the agony brought by your distance. Sweet Salsera, I burn more with each fading moment, out here in the dark periphery of your radiant time.
And if my breath were still alive, I might, perhaps, manage to utter my assembled praise for the Perfection that you are.
Micha,
omg. That was beautiful.
Keep Writing. We need more men like you.
– Edie, The Salsa FREAK!!
Edie The Salsa FREAK!! Website
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