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Feb. 28th, 2015 10:32 pm1. The following link was posted by a friend on Facebook: Leonard Nimoy's Advice to a Teenage Biracial Girl in 1968
Excerpt:"I know that you are half Vulcan and half human and you have suffered because of this," the girl named F.C. wrote. "My mother is Negro and my father is white and I am told this makes me a half-breed. ... I guess I'll never have any friends."
Nimoy was so moved by the letter that he responded at length in the next issue. "[Spock] said to himself: 'Not everyone will like me,' " Nimoy wrote. "But there will be those who will accept me just for who I am."
RIP Spock and the kind man who portrayed him, Leonard Nimoy. Who was able to exude that kindness into his role - to such a degree that Spock remains a role model for people around the world.
2. Blood on the Veil: A Belly Dancer's Journey Towards Healing was incredible. It has got to be amongst the most inspiring performances that I've seen in a long time. In it, Carol Tandava Henning, with a lot of humor and grace shows us how she learned to love and care for her body through the sacred art of belly dancing. And appreciate the feminine divine. She also tells a lot about the history of belly-dancing, with various dancers, besides herself performing in demonstration.
At the age of 5, Carol wanted to be ballerina, but her body grew, and grew, she also loved to eat, and developed a belly, curves, and was far too big and heavy to be the ballerina. Carol is six feet tall and big boned. She's bigger than I am, which is a rare thing. So she hung up her dance shows. She also wanted to be a solid gold dancer, but she lacked the slimness. So she went into acting - and learned to act, direct and produce. But once again - her body was not acceptable in the biz. So she hired a personal trainer and became obsessed with fitness, tightening those abs - until she ended up rupturing an ovarian cyst. So she took up yoga, and belly dancing. But realized she wasn't pretty or young enough to succeed in belly dancing. So gave up. Went back to the crunchs, etc - and ended up with three herniated discs in her back. So, she took up belly-dancing again - but this round, found a different and more caring teacher - who taught her that belly dancing you did for yourself, and for other women. You did not need to be thin, young or society's view of pretty. Body type did not matter. And through this teacher and others, Carol learned to love her belly and stop being at war with it. To care for it. This center of her being. She also delved into the history of the dance form and realized it existed before most dancers...it goes back to BC. And has changed over time, with various movements and things added.
I'll let her tell you about it:
I saw the New York City performance in the New Theater. It's a tiny theater in the East Village, just north of St. Marks. With bleacher style seating, you look down on the stage, as opposed to up at it. The stage is black, with black curtains. The audience was an intimate one, and diverse. One man was from Cairo. Another, a large black man, sat next to me reading a Robert Parker mystery before the show began. And below me were various dancers, and below them an guy who worked in IT.
The show is supposed to be traveling to Philadelphia and Chicago next. Variations of it has been performed in Taiwan, San Francisco, and Orlando.
I was in a phrase - blown away by it. It has changed how I view dancing, how I view my own ability to do it, and how I view my body and others. Having been plagued by a negative body image most of my life - and my own war with my belly, Carol's story resonated with me in a way not many do, and re-emphasized a few solid truths. Our bodies are different shapes, sizes, and instead of trying to mold them into what we believe others want or desire...we should love them and treat them with care. Listen to them. Enjoy them.
Excerpt:"I know that you are half Vulcan and half human and you have suffered because of this," the girl named F.C. wrote. "My mother is Negro and my father is white and I am told this makes me a half-breed. ... I guess I'll never have any friends."
Nimoy was so moved by the letter that he responded at length in the next issue. "[Spock] said to himself: 'Not everyone will like me,' " Nimoy wrote. "But there will be those who will accept me just for who I am."
RIP Spock and the kind man who portrayed him, Leonard Nimoy. Who was able to exude that kindness into his role - to such a degree that Spock remains a role model for people around the world.
2. Blood on the Veil: A Belly Dancer's Journey Towards Healing was incredible. It has got to be amongst the most inspiring performances that I've seen in a long time. In it, Carol Tandava Henning, with a lot of humor and grace shows us how she learned to love and care for her body through the sacred art of belly dancing. And appreciate the feminine divine. She also tells a lot about the history of belly-dancing, with various dancers, besides herself performing in demonstration.
At the age of 5, Carol wanted to be ballerina, but her body grew, and grew, she also loved to eat, and developed a belly, curves, and was far too big and heavy to be the ballerina. Carol is six feet tall and big boned. She's bigger than I am, which is a rare thing. So she hung up her dance shows. She also wanted to be a solid gold dancer, but she lacked the slimness. So she went into acting - and learned to act, direct and produce. But once again - her body was not acceptable in the biz. So she hired a personal trainer and became obsessed with fitness, tightening those abs - until she ended up rupturing an ovarian cyst. So she took up yoga, and belly dancing. But realized she wasn't pretty or young enough to succeed in belly dancing. So gave up. Went back to the crunchs, etc - and ended up with three herniated discs in her back. So, she took up belly-dancing again - but this round, found a different and more caring teacher - who taught her that belly dancing you did for yourself, and for other women. You did not need to be thin, young or society's view of pretty. Body type did not matter. And through this teacher and others, Carol learned to love her belly and stop being at war with it. To care for it. This center of her being. She also delved into the history of the dance form and realized it existed before most dancers...it goes back to BC. And has changed over time, with various movements and things added.
I'll let her tell you about it:
I saw the New York City performance in the New Theater. It's a tiny theater in the East Village, just north of St. Marks. With bleacher style seating, you look down on the stage, as opposed to up at it. The stage is black, with black curtains. The audience was an intimate one, and diverse. One man was from Cairo. Another, a large black man, sat next to me reading a Robert Parker mystery before the show began. And below me were various dancers, and below them an guy who worked in IT.
The show is supposed to be traveling to Philadelphia and Chicago next. Variations of it has been performed in Taiwan, San Francisco, and Orlando.
I was in a phrase - blown away by it. It has changed how I view dancing, how I view my own ability to do it, and how I view my body and others. Having been plagued by a negative body image most of my life - and my own war with my belly, Carol's story resonated with me in a way not many do, and re-emphasized a few solid truths. Our bodies are different shapes, sizes, and instead of trying to mold them into what we believe others want or desire...we should love them and treat them with care. Listen to them. Enjoy them.