Belly Dancing for the Midlife Soul Part 2

Written by Sandra Schrift


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TITLE: Belly Dancing forrepparttar Midlife Soul Part 2 AUTHOR: Sandra Schrift CONTACT: sandra@schrift.com COPYRIGHT: ©2004 by Sandra Schrift. All rights reserved Format: 60 Characters per line Article URL: http://www.schrift.com/article_39_belly_dancing.html Article Autoresponder: article-039@schrift.com ___________________________________________________________

Belly Dancing forrepparttar 123042 Midlife Soul

Isadora Duncan,repparttar 123043 mother of modern dance, says, “The dancer ofrepparttar 123044 future will be one whose body and soul have grown so harmoniously together thatrepparttar 123045 natural language of that soul will have becomerepparttar 123046 movement ofrepparttar 123047 body. The dancer will not belong to a nation, but to all humanity.”

In October 1989, while taking a brisk walk with my friend, Judy Cullins, I was given an idea that would allow me to merge my body and soul so harmoniously that my life literally changed. Judy had casually mentioned that she was taking a belly dance class through an adult education program in San Diego. Her exact words were, “It’s a hoot,” and that was just enough to spark a long held adult fantasy. So atrepparttar 123048 age of 52, this mother of five registered forrepparttar 123049 Tuesday night belly dance class and never looked back.

During my first night of class, our teacher greeted us at repparttar 123050 door with these instructions, “Grab a veil out ofrepparttar 123051 box,” she said. “There’s a dancer inside of you and she just needs to be let out.” It was right there that I caughtrepparttar 123052 belly dance bug and it changedrepparttar 123053 course of my life forever. Although my friends and peers couldn’t quite grasp repparttar 123054 concept and repeatedly asked why a mature woman decided to belly dance, I could only say that I foundrepparttar 123055 whole idea of this type of expression both provoking and rewarding.

I have found that belly dancing is a metaphor for life, for in dance we move through time and space, just as we do while we live outrepparttar 123056 passages of our lives. As I studiedrepparttar 123057 art of movement, I was also learningrepparttar 123058 art of living, since belly dancing teaches one how to be inrepparttar 123059 moment, to be in repparttar 123060 body and most of a to feel withrepparttar 123061 entire being. I’ve not only learned how to stay in shape, but I’ve learned to lead, to follow and best of all, to let go.

Ten years after taking my first lesson, I started teaching classes to a group of mature women, age 50 and over (My oldest student was 91) Students come with loads of self-doubt and self-consciousness, fearfully displaying their belly, yet eager to exercise and have some fun. They all stay because they loverepparttar 123062 chance to play and be inrepparttar 123063 present moment just like we did as children. “Love your belly” is what I say, for it’srepparttar 123064 only one you have. “Belly dancing can be equated to removing a curtain as you start to express yourself,” states Valentina Kouznetsov, a computer engineer from Russia. “It’s an exercise for my soul and puts me in touch with my inner feminity.

According to a recent Psychology Today survey, fifty-six percent of women are not happy with their bodies, most of whom are troubled by their abdomens, hips, muscle tone and weight. But things are changing and believe it or notrepparttar 123065 change is coming about throughrepparttar 123066 unusual art of belly dancing. During my classes we work our abdominals and hips in a way that our culture doesn’t teach. Sheila Disper, a retired social worker says, “We may be seniors but we’re not in rocking chairs.” I’ve noticed a lot of young people who can’t even keep up with us,” says Audrey de la Houssaye a retired chemist. Twenty years to tighten my abdominal muscles that were weakened by surgery, I am finally achieving results by belly dancing.

Helping Mid-Life Employees Find Meaning

Written by Craig Nathanson


People work to live, but most also live to work. A study onrepparttar meaning of work conducted back in 1987 revealed a strong attachment to work as a way of life. The study found that 86 percent of people would continue working even if they had enough money never to work another day. There could be no better indication that work is not simply a matter of putting food onrepparttar 123041 table, but is core torepparttar 123042 being of most adults. Adults in mid-life in particular often find this sense of work as a central component of their lives under direct assault from a business culture that undervalues personal fulfillment as an essential driver of productivity. I believerepparttar 123043 next wave of workforce management for enlightened corporations will be to focus on “softer” indicators of productivity. Fulfillment, meaning, satisfaction, and that intangible sense thatrepparttar 123044 job is about more than a paycheck are what will make all workers, in particular those in mid-life, more productive. The alternative to paying attention to these issues is to suffer high levels of attrition among mid-life workers. Some corporations takerepparttar 123045 short-sighted view that “experienced worker” is a euphemism for “highly compensated” and therefore see little reason to make any effort to retain older employees. Enlightened organizations understand that this is a penny wise and pound foolish approach. Mid-career, mid-life employees are often amongrepparttar 123046 most productive, skilled and dedicated in an organization. And as compensation plans tend to be more variable and results-oriented than inrepparttar 123047 past, it is less of a concern that more tenured employees earn more money just because they have been withrepparttar 123048 organization longer. As everyone knows,repparttar 123049 cost of retaining an employee is considerably lower thanrepparttar 123050 cost of hiring and training his or her replacement. Retention programs have tended to focus on tangible rewards. Bonuses, tuition assistance, flexible working hours, concierge services, even free gourmet coffee! What has not been central to retention strategies isrepparttar 123051 soul ofrepparttar 123052 mid-life, mid-career employee. So what practical measures can corporate HR and line managers take to nourishrepparttar 123053 souls of their most important employees? Encourage employees to explore their inner needs. Many mid-life employees are essentially satisfied with their work. They are challenged, never bored, and believe they are putting their skills to good use. Yet they may not be sufficiently introspective to understand whether they are buildingrepparttar 123054 deep level of career and life satisfaction required for true contentment. The challenge here is that such employees are just one wake up call away from questioning everything in their lives. Consider balance, introspection, exploration of different desires and interests, many of which are not work-related, a kind of preventive medicine forrepparttar 123055 soul.

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