Dancing My Prayers

Do you want to catapult your devotional life to a new level? Do you desire to worship in a more intimate way? Do you love to dance? If you answered, "yes' to any of these questions, then my latest book "Dancing My Prayers" is for you. Whether you are a novice dancer with no experience, an amateur who thinks they can dance; a liturgical dancer or a professional diva dancer – this book will guide you through a journey to meeting God on your dance floor. I'm grateful to all who have called, texted, emailed and contacted me via Facebook about how they have been blessed by the book. Below are just a few comments I've received.

"Dancing my Prayers" by, Susan Gaddy Pope is the ultimate prayer book for dancers and non-dancers alike...It teaches you how to dance your prayers in confidence and get RESULTS! Thank you Mrs. Pope for the blessing.Chapters 4, 5, and 6 were especially helpful for me!!! FACE BOOK FAMILY - buy it, you will be blessed tremendously." LaVerne Duncan

"This book is an answer to my prayer. I have desired to develop a greater prayer language. I started today and I experienced God in a new way. He honored my intentionality to reach Him, please Him, woo Him, love Him, praise Him, and trust Him with my embodied communication to Him. It made me stop to think about what I was saying to Him. He flowed out of me giving me movement. Aaaah and my name, Simone, means "God has heard". I have such joy today!!! Thank God, thank you and thank Susan." Simone Baitey

To quote from a book my friend Don Bell gave me: "Dance prayers are embodied representations of our conversations with God. When we dance our prayers, we give life to our petitions and thanksgivings... Dance is my chosen weapon of warfare..." Christine Miller

Everyone has a story to tell. This book is my story of how God has transformed my life through dance. As you can tell from other post, I see the world through a dancer's eyes. Life is just more interesting that way! Every dance God has ever choreographed through me is a result of a conversation we've had. I so enjoy my prayer time with God as He continues to write the story of my life. What's your story?

A B C…Dance

"There's a reward in dancing that's indescribable…the mental and physical coming together. And when everything is right…there's no other feeling like it and you remember that and you'll do almost anything to feel that again." Robert Weiss

The upcoming "Educating the Creative Mind" Conference at Kean University, March 4-6, 2010 will heighten the public awareness of the significance of the arts in children's lives and education. During this conference, in my workshop ABC…Dance, I will have the opportunity to share with educators from all over the world how dance education can motivate learning in the regular classroom.

I believe educating a child through dance education not only fosters creativity, it awakens them from the inside out. It stirs up creative juices that have somehow dried up in the regular classroom. Teaching children to be creative thinkers requires teaching the whole child. In order to teach children, you must find a way to reach them. Dance is an excellent way to do this as long as it is done with a purpose in mind.

The creative arts are a child's first language. Children use dance, music, and art, to express thoughts, ideas and feelings. When working with young children and the arts, the end product is not as important as the journey it takes to get there. In early childhood education, most students excel through kinesthetic experiences. Many children enter kindergarten as kinesthetic and tactile learners. They want to touch everything. So how do we teach basic letter recognition, spelling, and phonics to early elementary school children? The way I taught my son in 2^nd grade when he was diagnosed with dyslexia – we DANCE! We offer the student the opportunity to experience the lesson using their body. Letters, words and stories come to life and thus can be recalled and retold. Letters become more than lines and circles. They take on a whole new meaning as they are embodied and connected to actual words.

During the conference we'll get to hear from Howard Gardner, internationally renowned Professor of Cognition and Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Saturday the children get to participate in the Children's Creative Arts Day. This promises to be a great conference for educators and parents.

I Gotta Feeling

Last week, over 100 students at Dr. E. Alma Flagg School performed a choreographed dance to the Black eyed Peas "I Gotta Feeling" for our Dr. Martin Luther King birthday celebration. The choreography was similar to the flash mob dance used for The Oprah Show's 24^th season kickoff party. I wanted to create an all inclusive atmosphere for the students to demonstrate the concepts and ideals Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. believed in. The objective goals of the lesson for the choreography were for the students to be able to:

• Demonstrate respect for themselves and others
  
• Respect space
  
• Dance in unison
  
• Show high levels of energy
  
• Follow the leader
  

The experience was magical for the students and the audience. I even saw a few parents and teachers join the students on certain parts of the choreography. I used one student as the leader of the group whom they all had to take their cues from. Students were picked for the choreography not just based on their memorization and performance of the choreography but on their ability to demonstrate respect for their classmates. Students, who either; teased other students, spoke negatively, demonstrated apathy or were just plain disrespectful in class were not invited to be a part of this choreography. After we learned the dance I asked the students why they thought we were doing a dance titled "I Gotta Feeling" for a MLK birthday celebration. Some of the student's responses were:

• "I've got a feeling is another way to say I Have a Dream"
  
• "I've got a feeling that things are going to be better."
  
• "MLK believed in blacks and whites living together. In this dance we have to get along because it is so many of us."
  
• "When we all fell to the floor and got back up it was as it were dead and then got energized again from each other."
  
• "My favorite part of the dance was the wave because it felt like we were passing the energy."
  

I am extremely proud of all the students who performed. I feel like they all stepped up a notch and decided to not just dance but dance with a purpose. I'm especially proud of the way they complemented each other after the performance and gave each other positive constructive criticism. I believe this is an experience they will not forget – I know I won't! I dance because I'm part of something big and I choose today to dance and live more abundantly.

Remembering the Dream

January 15, 1981; I was blessed to be a part of the rally to make Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s birthday a holiday. It was freezing outside but I didn't care. As a student at the University of Maryland, College Park; a predominantly white campus, I felt a strong responsibility to do my part. I was so excited to be a part of something so big. At the time, I don't think any of us had any idea the impact of what we were doing that day. Of course we had no idea that 28 years later we would witness the inauguration of our first African American president.

Last week, Rev. Dr. Joseph E. Lowery spoke at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration at NJPAC. I was so honored to be in the presence of such wisdom. He charged everyone to do their part. He encouraged us all to be the best at what we do. "If you are a street sweeper, be the best street sweeper you can be." I'm encouraged today to just be better, to follow through and not forget that cold day, January 15, 1981. I'm encouraged to keep teaching, writing and dancing, even when I don't feel like it. I'm inspired by Arthur Mitchell who after hearing of the assassination of Dr. King, decided to start the Dance Theatre of Harlem to dispel the myth that African Americans can't dance classical ballet.

Now more than ever it is time to live the dream. What has Dr. King's dream inspired you to do? What is it you are supposed to be doing with your life? Are you on the path to that dream? Each day we should be chipping away at our dream until it manifest (made a reality). Is your dream part of a bigger dream or is it a selfish dream that only you benefit from? When we marched 29 years ago, I don't think any of us were thinking about ourselves. We just knew it was something we had to do. I dance because its helps me remember the dream. I dance because…

The gift of dance

As I reflect on this past year, I have much to be thankful for. Just this season I celebrate my son's milestone birthday; 33 friends and family all gathered for Thanksgiving bringing my dad to tears; I'm publishing my 2nd book DANCING MY PRAYERS and I'm still here, using my gift of dance. Last year this time I could not lift my right arm due to a rotator cuff injury. As I sulked and moaned about not being able to dance full out I was reminded that God uses even the least of us. As I tried to dance my prayers in the morning, I was frustrated when I couldn't even raise my arms to praise Him. Lying prostrate was so painful I could not bear it. My students suffered as I could not demonstrate simple por de bras. I spent much time getting medical attention when what I needed most was rest. A year later I can now lift my arms again. It is still uncomfortable but I'm thankful I can once again use my limbs. This past year has made me truly appreciate the gift of dance. Its amazing how you can appreciate something so much more when you don't have it. We all have the ability to dance and we should use it everyday. Whether is exercise, cha cha slide, salsa or African dance - this year give yourself the gift of dance. Use your gift to celebrate you, this season and the fact that we are all still here. I dance because....

"Dance Brings You Home"

I was blessed to participate in the recent Symposium on North African Dance & Culture at Rutgers University, Newark. When I signed up for this event, I had no idea of what I was getting myself into. I just knew that I have a desire to research why people dance. When I heard Morocco (Caroline Varga Dinicu) open with "Where there is no dance there is no life" I was intrigued. When Amel Tafsout later said "dance brings you home" I knew I had much to learn.

Morocco spoke on Dance As Community Identity in Selected Berber Nations of Morocco. I was fascinated by the Guedra, which means spreading soul's love and peace to the beat of the heart. In North African dance you learn dance in the family. It is communal - people dance as a way of life. Dance is their pride and a statement of their ethnicity.

Amel Tafsout, who is from Algeria, spoke on body Art: Symbols, Henna and Tattoos in the Maghreb. During our movement workshop she spoke with such pain and passion about the persecution of her people but when she danced she was filled with joy. She explained that when she dances, she is with her grandmother, who taught her to dance. "Dance is such an integral part of their society, that everyone learns the dances from the grandparents, parents, siblings, etc..."

As I danced with Morocco and Amel I thought about how many in our culture do not dance. I thought about my students who have never seen their parents dance. Our dances are taught in studios and schools, sometimes without meaning, just as a means or performance. I wonder would our children, our society be different if dance were more a part of our daily lives, our celebrations. Dance brings such a release for so many. So why don't we dance daily, at family gatherings, in church, in school?

This year as we celebrate my dad's 86 years of life at our family Thanksgiving celebration, we're going to dance - maybe Swing dance (which he did in his younger days) or just a line dance. I believe we will all remember that experience much longer than the turkey or the drama that sometimes comes along with family. I'll let you know how it turns out.

I dance because dance always brings me home!

ZUMBA

This year to celebrate Hispanic Heritage month we introduced ZUMBA to the students and staff. We had a great time learning dance movements from Salsa, Merengue, Cha-Cha, Reggaeton and Cumbia. It was a great opportunity to show my students how Hispanic culture has influenced our world. It was great to see students dancing with each other and being excited and happy about dancing merengue and salsa. They didn't get into arguments about where they were from and who danced better - they just danced. The parents were treated to a morning ZUMBA class - which they loved. As the parents danced I heard them yell out "Yeah Daddy Yankee" and "We're not used to sweating like this!" This workout is a great way to lose weight, exercise with your family or just learn about Hispanic culture. How different the world the dance would look without the contributions of Hispanic culture. Look for your local ZUMBA class. Its a great workout and a way to continue to dance your way to good health.