Inspire Belly Dance: Julie Eason

Now, Julie is a business woman, marketing, PR & copywriter, so obviously before I started the story I was relating deeply to her plight. Of course, she also used to be a ballet dancer, and I've been known to tell a story or two about screaming bloody murder as my mom tried to put 5 year old me in a pair of pink tights. It's why as soon as I could, I moved to jazz (no tights required! Huzzah!).

But the statement of Julie's that made me cue the waterworks was about how puberty, something you know that's inevitable and pretty much out of our control, ruined her dream of becoming a prima ballerina.

"I became a teenager, sprouted hips and boobs, and was 'released' from my dance company," Julie said. "After dieting like crazy to lose my hips and a painful surgery to 'fix' my feet, I tried to continue dancing ballet. But my body just wasn't the right shape anymore."
~Julie Eason, From Ballet Refugee to Belly Dance Business Guru

That paragraph alone has three boo-hoo-hoo moments for me:

1. She was released from her dance company. What horrible human beings. How can anyone do that to another person, let alone a teenager? As if we don't have enough problems as teen girls, let's add, "Oh by the way, your body is wrong. All wrong. You can no longer be a ballet dancer. Thanks for playing in this week's puberty-roulette."
2. Try to 'fix' one's body. Ok, this is why I lovelovelove belly dance. There's no 'fixing' anything. Those hips you think are too big? Great. Actually, go out and get some more of that. Your stomach isn't flat enough? All the more to roll, honey. And yeah, it's supposed to shake like that. 
3. That she kept trying! She loved dance so much, she would do anything to get back on the dance floor.

Well Julie, I am glad you are a belly dancer now. I really enjoyed your answers, and good luck in the contest!

Inspire Belly Dance: The Beginning

Helping Dilara run contests and promotions highlighting the awesome stories of belly dance is probably one of the most fulfilling parts of my job (other than rifling through boxes of new clothing and, you know, getting to hang out with belly dancers all day).

But this Inspire Belly Dance contest? It has been tears-city for this girl, right here.

First of all, I have this really bad habit of relating to every single sad or rough statement in the questionnaires the nominees must answer, making it difficult to make it through a Q&A without a box of tissues (thanks go to OfficeGoddessJen for always keeping the office stocked with tissues).

Second of all, I was tasked with writing these inspire pieces, and heaven knows I've never written anything without feeling it deeper than I do the bottom of a Ben and Jerry's Pint (ok, it's getting past my bedtime and the metaphors are stretched. Sorry)

Third of all, hormones.

So over the next couple of days, I'm going to make you feel my pain by highlighting each of the Inspire Belly Dance nominees and the section of their story that made me make elephant noises into my tear-tissues. Thank me later.