seeing with new eyes, moving with new feet

Just sitting back and thinking of the upcoming performance on Parliament Hill, and I am getting excited. The magic of authentic movement is powerful. Dancing with these amazing women has already transformed me already, and I suspect that we will all be transformed in unique ways by this creative experience. Even in the first few rehearsals, we were moving around the studio with ease, no one bumping or even brushing anyone else. We immediately had a sense of each other's space and energy, which seems rare and special, to my mind. This group of women is powerful in ways we haven't even begun to tap yet.

Another interesting thing about working with Natasha is that she has pulled us together as a group (she really is our anchor!), but has also encouraged us to be authentic and individual in our movement. I have never worked in another environment where the teamwork has been so organic. The work itself is a challenge, but everyone seems to be focused on that instead of on competing with and comparing ourselves to one another.

Speaking of challenges, the biggest one for me in this piece has been to compose the short sung blessing that we are set to do inside the Centre Block. Natasha challenged me to write something that no speech-writer or politico on the Hill would ever write. We talked about how we have to let go of old ideas, and in this case, I realized that I have so much history in this city. It's a lot to let go of, and yet, it is so important to let go of it, because my perspective cannot otherwise be changed.

It's as though I am returning to this place as a woman transformed. No, I really am returning to this place as a woman transformed. Being on the Hill as a tiny cog in the massive machinery of government is part of who I was, but all that is in the past, because in order to grow and to present this piece authentically, I have to look at both myself and the world with new eyes, to step onto that hill with new feet. To access that authentic voice inside, it is so important to be willing to leave the past in the past, and to challenge oneself to do new things. I may be scared to sing the things I write - but it won't stop me. I have known for a long time that I have something to say, and thanks in large part to working with strong, creative women, I have found a way to say it.

I have a voice. And I finally know how to use it.