I just saw the video below and besides being cute and entertaining, it made me think, “why don’t we just dance?”

I love Josh Turner for many reasons (his brilliant baritone and handsome features to name a couple!), but I think when I listened to this song this evening, I heard it with new ears. As I watched the peoples’ expressions as they saw dancers (in a so-called flash mob) break into fun moves into the middle of the mall, I realized that they were all in shock. They looked baffled and puzzled, and some of them even seemed concerned about the sanity of the dancers!

Although the onlookers seemed to enjoy it at the end, they were confronted with something out of the ordinary. Here were people who were not conforming to society’s norms – it is not normal to bust a move in the middle of a crowded mall and it is even more unusual for a group of people to do so! But Turner’s refrain poses a great question: “why don’t we just dance?” Why can’t we seem to cut loose? Why don’t we just give it a try?

When you’re dancing, your whole self is involved – your body, your mind, your spirit and emotions are all together. Even if you’re a terrible dancer, you can’t argue that this isn’t the case! The physical activity boosts endorphins and naturally makes you a little bit happier. More than that, I find that when I’m dancing, it’s easy to be in my own little world and if I’m having a good time (which I usually am), I’m not thinking about others’ impressions of my hideous dancing or awkwardness. I’m not trapped by my own self-consciousness.

I will be the first to admit that I have no shame. By that I mean I’m willing to make a fool of myself. Whether its acting on a stage, or playing a goofball to illustrate a point, or even dancing alone before the crowd in the bar has started to just to make sure I’m having fun, I have done some bold things! I’ve even been known to burst into song and dance in public and while that’s certainly not appropriate everywhere, I think sometimes we just need to loosen up a bit – to shake up the world and keep it on its toes.

Sometimes it seems we’re so worried about being socially acceptable or popular or about fitting in (thanks, peer pressure!) that we forget how much fun it is to just let go; we forget how freeing it is to truly be ourselves in the midst of the world. Maybe if we did let go, we’d encourage others to have a bit more fun and not to take things so seriously all the time. There are horrible troubles in this world and I’m not saying we should ignore them by living our lives in a Pollyanna-type state, but why can’t we bring a little joy and light to the world.

I guess what I’m trying to say is “why don’t we all just dance?!”

© 2010. Annabelle Peake. All rights reserved.