Last Saturday, I went to a barn dance, and it was great! It was the second time I had been to one at Pie Ranch, a small idyllic farm off the ocean-front Highway 1.
Barn dances (aka square dances) are super fun for many reasons. One of the more unexpected ones is because they are so structured. That seems a bit counter-intuitive; shouldn’t structure restrict the amount of fun? Au contraire, the structure gives you freedom to more fully enjoy, especially as a beginner! With the basic motions settled, you are free to focus on adding life to your movement and your interactions with others.
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| Photo from Andy Wilson |
But if someone decided to just stop and do their own thing,
it could cause a giant pile-up...
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| From Huffington Post |
In sacrificing your independence,
you can become part of something bigger than yourself.
Granted, the marching band requires a bit more prior instruction/practice to put a field show, but a marching unit/parade band can respond to commands on the fly:
“Forward march; Left flank; right flank”
versus
“Swing yer partner, round and round!”
OK, so the tone's a bit different, but there are definite similarities there too.
As a bonus, for whatever reason, the structured environment attracts a lot of unique individuals. Maybe both activities are just enough “against the grain.”
Here’s to all of you weirdos!
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| From http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaY2A4CvfvU |
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| Photo by Ian Billings |
