So we left off with absolutely shocking (not) news that I was exhausted.
In view of that, my friend and boss (hi, Kira!) invited me to stay at a dance retreat she was hosting in the Carpathians. "Just come and do nothing for a week" was the invitation. And, god, I needed it more than I thought.
Overnight train to Lviv
"Mokh" guest house in the Carpathians
I fell in love with these mountains
I do not remember if I've ever mentioned it, and I definitely haven't talked about it a lot, but I used to be a dancer. Semi-professional, I'd say. I danced, performed, and taught - does it count?
I stopped when COVID hit and sort of never went back. But I was also always in the dance orbit because I work as an admin for a world-renowned dancer (Hi, Kira!). I just never felt the urge. It was then that my body went into a state of permanent exhaustion, and I couldn't shake it off. I tried to return when the lockdown was beginning to ease off, and I went to aerial silks, but I think I was unlucky with the instructor who told me huge purple bruises were OK, and then I traumatized my wrist, and that was the end of THAT...
For years, my body just didn't want to move. I gained weight (duh), started trying to diet, walk 10 000 steps, do yoga at home - nothing would stick, and I just sorta... accepted that. From an active person who'd dance for 10+ hours a week, I turned into a shrimp who never leaves the computer desk.
Well, spending a week with the ladies who breathe dance in a remote house in the mountains did its thing. They invited me to join in during the dance party, and my body just... remembered everything. A few days after returning, I was already in the dance studio. Hopefully, this time it will stick, and I'll go back to dancing on a somewhat permanent basis.
Spending a week there, far from explosions, let me forget about war for a bit, and then I felt guilty that I forgot, but also my body drank in that calmness like it was starving for it.
I actually did nothing. I slept for 12+ hours a day, I swam in the pool, sat under trees, sketched, crocheted, and I think that's it.
A few weeks later, however, I was already back on the train to Lviv.
This time it was a work trip. Kira's mom (known in the community as Mama Boss for her strong opinions on stage presence) is an amazing costume designer. Every time I visit, I am blown away by our conversations and her views on costume. So I decided that enough is enough - someone has to preserve this knowledge. So this is what I did: I took a week to just go to Lviv and do that.
I hope Kira won't mind that I share this picture. This is Mama Boss's domain. It's a bit messy, but in an artistic sort of way, and it always makes me feel cosy.
Unfortunately, we both caught a cold, and for a few days we were feeling pretty weak. It also took us a while to figure out the format of the course, but in the last few days we figured out the system and recorded everything. I now need some time to edit it all, including examples and such. I am happy we have the info, though. I'll be going back eventually to record next blocks of the course, but... one step at a time.
This trip has inspired me to return to something else from a time long ago...
A very popular and very expensive element of the costume popular in this dance style is a fabric called assuit (yes, after the Egyptian city assuit, even though the embroidery technique originated in Turkey from their tel kirma art form - no, don't get me started, I can talk about it for hours!) Anyway, since it's so expensive, I could never afford to buy it. My solution? "I'll learn to make it myself!" And I did. I even had an etsy shop for a while, just selling embroidered pieces for costumes.
Yeah, a week of talking about the intricacies of costume design inspired me to return to making assuit.
I think you've gathered by now that any kind of craft that requires fine motor skills is my stress relief activity, so this works perfectly. This piece will go to Mama Boss so she can make something beautiful for Kira.
And this is basically where we're at at the moment.
I could talk more about air raids and lack of sleep, and family at the front line, and add some bitching about website-related work, but these are things I want to share and remember about the past few weeks.
I really love my job, and Kira, and her family, and her dog. And I know they love me too. Right now Kira and some of her students are running a fundraiser for an eco flow station to help me through the winter, and I am so blown away and grateful... The past few months just showed me how many great people are in my life, I am so, so grateful to have them, and it makes me feel better about myself. I guess I've done something right if such amazing people care about me.
