I could never dance! Haha. Seriously though I was one of the people who thought "Hell, I cannot dance and I don't think I even want to try." So, for years I told myself I couldn't do anything of the likes of bellydance. So, my friend bought the first BDSS solos DVD and I saw the lovely Ansuya Rathor dancing and it was then that I decided I'd break the cycle of telling myself no. I started buying instructional DVD's and watching as much as I could. I began to pick up movements and soon I was on my way to take classes from a local dancer. Right away I felt like I belonged somewhere and it was great! :-) I knew that when I had told myself that I couldn't do it, that it had planted the idea in my head for so long that when I began dancing I couldn't believe that just with practice I could do so much more than what I originally thought! WOW!

My point is that even though you may not fancy yourself a dancer, you never know what you can accomplish until you try! You should take some classes and there will be those moves where you think that you will never be able to get them, but you have to learn to push through the negativity and give things a try and practice, practice, practice!

Now, the whole talent thing does come into play. However, it is not talent that shapes how well you can do certain movements (that is practice as mentioned above) it is talent that helps you with developing your own thoughts about what would look good with a certain piece of music and how you interpret those movements; embellishments on moves, if you will. However the basics always need to be learned and you must understand each and every movement before you begin to put you own spin on things *which I learned from a recent Zoe Jakes class*

So, is there talent involved in some dancers, yes, however if you stick with it and you are dedicated to learning then you can practice and become whatever bellydancer you want to be!

When I first started belly dance it was exhilarating and frustrating. I found something that became a passion. In the beginning I had to train my body to do stuff it was not used to doing. I felt so klutzy. In time, with class and practice, my body began to respond and become more graceful. When you 1st start in class, you should also be in class with other beginners. You will all be just learning and floundering. In time, you will all grow together. Encouraging, supporting each other, becoming more and more graceful. Your posture will improve. Your self esteem will improve. If this is what you want, go for it. Belly dance is a community of people of all ages, shapes and colors.