Sunday

I am starting to go to church more often. Tonight they were giving away the poinsettias so now I have a new plant. The service was full of good music and I sang everything. "And my heart is full of joy," loud and clear. Nobody sings in church anymore...

Well, back to today. It was warm, 32 degrees, and so I walked around after morning ballet class, stopping at my favorite frozen yogurt place. I actually walked so much that I got home too late for the gym, since I didn't want to miss church. So, I went to the bookstore cafe to warm up and check my emails and then headed for the gym after church. I was able to get in some laps using the noodle, since I didn't want to get my hair wet and then go outside. It's not summer, when I can just breeze outside. Mostly I had a workout walking all day, getting some new wool socks and lounging cold weather clothing and a new swim cap. So it was kind of shopping day.

But ballet today energized me so much that I was able to do all of the above. I was happy, too, because I took pointe class yesterday and that always makes me feel like a ballerina...

Barre:

1. Face barre and do demi-plies, releves and grand plies.

2. Grand plies with port de bras forward and back at barre.

3. Tendus with demi-plies. Tendu front, back with inside leg, side, passe balances.

4. Fast side degages.

5. Ronde jambes with fondus, developpe front and extend to back, penche, balance in arabesque.

6. Frappes with balance a la seconde.

7. Sou sou coupe balance, 5th, passe balance, attitude balance, let go of barre and extend to arabesque, swing leg forward.

8. Swing legs at barre, balance passe.

9. Developpe seconde, to arabesque, balance.

10. Grand battements en croix.

Centre:

1. Tendus back a la seconde, tombe pas de bourre to each side, sou sou, passe balance.

2. Grand plie, developpe a la seconde, ronde jambe en l'air to arabesque.

3. Pirouette from 5th position to 4th, pirouettes.

4. Chasse pas de bourre, pirouette en dehors, rotation to pirouettes en dedans, end with pirouettes en dehors.

5. Changements, echappes to 4th, pirouettes.

6. Glissade assemble, assemble, changements to assemble.

7. Sissonnes in arabesque, in seconde, sissonnes in arabesque, seconde.

Class was simple but hard. The teacher said to push the floor when doing pirouettes. Stretch the knees, point the toes, hold the back, use the shoulders and arms, spot the head. All the basics. Stretching in-between and after class. Then I lingered a while and watched the teacher giving a private class to a young boy. His mother said he was taking dance classes and a hip-hop teacher said he should take ballet because he had the right body, and she was happy to find a male teacher for her boy. I heard the teacher telling him to jump a lot and practice turns, because that's what male dancers have to do. I continued to stretch and, as always, found it difficult to leave the magical place of the ballet studio. I love ballet class!