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| Coach Katie - after teaching Lyra at Free Flow Academy for nearly 2 years accepted a job with Cirque Du Soleil at Club Med in the Dominican Republic. |
I grew up playing organized sports. I was a competitive athlete, and loved nearly every moment of it. And like many competitive athletes, you work hard toward goals to get a scholarship, or maybe even play professionally. It wasn't until I was introduced to the Arts that I realized I was missing out on a whole other world. And I transitioned from the world of being a Competitive Athlete, to a Movement Artist. Funny enough, my involvement in the Arts landed me a career as a Sports Newscaster for a cable television station in San Bernadino County. It was interesting to see how so many children and professional athletes had ended up in sports, only because the parents hoped their child would get a scholarship. Even if the kids didn't like the sport, that's what they did. Sports was not fun, it was a job, a chore, a means to an end. A thing you did because it might possibly lead to money, and success. It was then that I realized that the whole point of sports is to teach important life lessons in a safe setting.
I remember interviewing a star athlete; he was prospective recruit from High School to the NBA. He had absolutely no interest in talking about Basketball. His only interest was girls, and that was that. This kid seemed to have it all, on the surface, but I could see his passion for Basketball had long subsided. But even though his passion had dwindled, he was still going to receive an incredible opportunity, that would lead to more opportunities. Training can feel like a chore on many occasions, but I think if you have goals, and find a real, true passion that can carry you through the mundane and the difficult, the skies the limit on what dreams may come true.
We live in a First World. And with that, comes an exercise of privilege. Many of us, do get to follow our dreams and explore the things that make us happy, excited, and passionate about life. What an incredible life and gift to be able to follow, create, and live our ideal! Everyone has challenges, and certainly limitations, but it would be a gross underestimation of our capacity to create, if we live in a mental state of limiting beliefs about ourselves. It is a also a gross underestimation of our capacity to innovate if the voices we most often hear in our mind is that of sarcasm, and offense taken to those who promote following your dreams with enthusiasm. You have to admit, in this swankin' First World, So much of what we need to survive, is readily available. And everything we could ever want, to thrive, is at our fingertips. So why not follow a dream? Why not create your ideal day, day in and day out?
When Free Flow Academy was created, our vision was to bring together movement communities from all over the world to collaborate and create together. When we look at our business model, we see that we are truly in the business of building up communities. And with that, we have created a support network for our students, and clients to truly thrive. We have had many clients and employees go on to do incredible things, like compete on American Ninja Warrior, or like Coach Katie, become a performer for Cirque Du Soleil. Whatever your passion, or your dream, we're here to support you and help you achieve your goals.
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| Katie's skills and connection with the youth landed her a position that allows her to continue her career as a professional aerialist, but also a Cirque Coach for kids on holiday. She has expressed that her life has achieved a balance full of beauty and rewarding connections. |
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| And there is also this reward. When Coach Katie isn't performing or teaching, she's enjoying the vastness of beauty in her natural surroundings. Not a bad gig I would say.
Now, if you are feeling a slight twinge of jealousy, and thinking, maybe you need to get off your computer, or phone, stop reading this blog, and get moving on the things that really excite you, consider that their is a whole network of people that have goals, who are trying to get into shape, have fun, build a new skill, meet new people, and/or find a creative outlet... Sometimes we just need a fresh dose of energy in our lives, and other people and networks can be just the thing that provide that. If you feel you don't have a passion, or a purpose, maybe it's time you surround yourself with people who do, and see what happens.
Consider that it's a lot more fun to share your experiences with others, and to allow yourself a little room for exploring and being creative on a solo quest, with the balance of a little friendly competition with your peers. One thing I have found that I LOVE about the Movement Arts, is that there are no set positions to play, you get to explore all the avenues you want, and see for yourself, the opportunities that are out there. And if the opportunity doesn't exist, well, you can create it. When you put yourself out there, and don't allow yourself to be limited by the possibility of failure, and you approach your challenges, or lack thereof, with optimism, you find that you grow inside and out, you make new friends and connections, and you give yourself the tools to find balance, beauty, and joy. And hey, if you're looking to join the Circus, we have just the thing for you. Check out our Circus Camp next week: 6/13 - 6/17 - Circus Arts (Aerial Arts, Poi, Acro, Sword Wielding, Facepainting) 12:30pm – Arrive/Warm up/Game/Open Gym 1:00pm – 2:00pm – Skill Building (Days will Vary but will include the following technical performance skills in the following order Mon - Fri: Balance, Poise, Stage Presence, Theatrics, Facepainting/Makeup application) 2:00pm – 2:15pm – Break/Snack/Open Gym 2:15pm – 3:15pm – Skill Building (Days will Vary but will include the following: Aerial Silks, Poi, Sword, Acrobatics, Performance ready!) 3:15pm – 3:30pm – Open Gym We will have a performance for parents on Friday at 3:20pm |
