Behind the twirling is a tightly wound sense of self-protection, from being told the way I moved my body was wrong.
Behind the jumping is a feeling of being held down by gravity, believing that nothing would ever change.
Behind the swirl of a skirt is a girl who sits on her hands as otherwise they fidget and fly freely when she talks.
Behind the feet standing in a ray of light is a woman who thought she was invisible.
Behind the dance is a life long journey to feel present in her own skin.
Behind the photo is something different than the viewer might see.
But the story the viewer sees is just as important. That craving to feel free, to create spaces where one can ‘dance like no one is watching’, but if I don’t tell you that there are deeper stories behind these images where I am cultivating whimsy and freedom, I fear you might believe that whimsy is something frivolous or some utopian place you can’t go.
But you can.
Whimsy is respite.
Twirling is freedom.
Jumping is release.
Dancing is self-love.
And we all deserve to stand in the light.
Behind the photo is a much different story than what you see but I want you to remember the whimsy, to seek out those moments for yourself, in whatever way that happens for you.
Because to me, whimsy isn’t wimpy. It isn’t childlike. It isn’t goofy. It is sacred and radical.