DANCE

• Erica Manini, Grade 8
• Poetry
• 2008

As I enter the stage, I leave all inhibitions at the door

My emotions run wild, like monkeys on the loose at a zoo, as I begin to dance for you

Attitudes and arabesques, the sequins are like shining stars on my tutu’s hem

Many hours of tiredness, toil and tears have gone into this moment; this moment of pure joy

Dance keeps me living; it is my oxygen, my drug and my addiction

I see your silhouettes in the audience and your presence makes me want to dance to the summit of my ability

My mind is like the hustle and bustle of peak hour traffic; alive with
thoughts and feelings:

D etermination
A nticipation
N erves
C oncentration
E xhilaration

The butterflies in my stomach lurch and flutter about with each
movement

I long to dance; I desire dance; I crave dance; I hunger and thirst for dance, like a child yearns for food and drink in poverty

As I pirouette, pliè and prance among the gleaming lights, I am telling you a story, only without the simple function of words

I express the passion that lies in my heart and soul all through the incomparable art of dance.