a matter of feet and timing

I read somewhere that the universe unfolds according to how you need it to. I have always had okay feet for ballet - they're not as beautifully arched as Alessandra Ferri's or Paloma Herrera's or even Jacqui's, but they're far from being flat-footed. Still, all my ballet years, my pointe shoes never look like those ads in Dance Magazine; at best, I have okay arches and I get up on my toes without problem, but the shank remains straight like the block of wood it is.

To "ballet outsiders," the shank is the block of very thin wood that lines the sole of the shoe, to support the foot when we go up on pointe. The tip of the pointe shoe is made of papier mache, not wood.

A lot of dancers who are not as gifted as Alessandra or Paloma cut the shank right at the instep of their foot, so that it will bend the shoe more, creating a deeper arch and a more aesthetic foot. I know of dancers who do this, some are even prima ballerinas. I myself have never done that to any of my shoes because I'm worried it will affect my performance. I stay on the safe side, never mind if my shoe looks mejo kawawa, archless.

Back to the universe unfolding, well, my feet are now more arched. It's a significant difference from last year and I know why - my theraband exercises (a theraband is a resistance band - a long piece of thin rubber that you can use to stretch and condition your muscles, like free weights but with more resistance). Daddy only got me using the theraband last January, mostly for body conditioning, in view of my worries about using my aging limbs. It's been very good for body conditioning but has been great as well for working my feet.

Like I said, I have okay feet, but only since I started working it with the theraband did I start really feeling my arches going as far as they can. They're still not Paloma in my Capezios but the shanks are nicely curved now, and I look more and more like a professional ballet dancer. And I'm stronger en pointe (on my toes).

I look more a dancer in my Gaynor Mindens. Their shanks are made of fiberglass and conform to the foot more than the wooden shanks of other pointe shoes. It's actually a hit and miss thing, whether your feet will look good and dance well in them or not. Mine actually look very very nice in Gaynors, almost Paloma-ish, even though they had cut up my heels the first time I wore them. It was hard to get used to dancing in them but now, it's like chicken feed.

So, in effect, I had come back to ballet at a really good time in my life; this is a really good time to be dancing. If only there was any dancing to do.

Tonight would have been an opening night for me. I hope I will have another one soon. I believe that the universe has yet to unfold.