In an effort to make my last year of college as fun and fulfilling as possible, I decided to take the Beginning Tap Dancing ExCo this semester. In my opinion, the is one of the coolest things about 91直播; it鈥檚 an academic department that offers one- or two-credit classes on subjects outside of regular departments, usually taught by students or community members. This could range anywhere from a dance class, like the one I鈥檓 taking, to a class on Dungeons and Dragons, Rock Climbing, or Lord of the Rings. A big regret of mine is that I haven鈥檛 taken as many ExCos as I could have in my time here, but all of the ones I have taken, I鈥檝e enjoyed. My sophomore year I took the Tumbling ExCo, and last spring I took the Juggling ExCo and the Ukulele ExCo. All of the ExCos I鈥檝e taken have been student-taught, and they鈥檝e all involved learning a new skill, which is something I always enjoy.
The Tap ExCo has probably been my favorite ExCo I鈥檝e taken. Sundays from 2pm to 4pm is the time of the week where I get to show up, watch tap dancing videos, and have a great time learning something new. I dabbled in tap dancing in middle school, and I feel like revisiting that short period of my life in my senior year of college is a full-circle moment for me.
I would go to my tap class every day if I could, because I truly love everything about it. I like the instructor and my peers who I鈥檓 tapping with, I like learning how to make sounds with my feet in different ways, and I like allocating time in my week to stay active and have fun while doing it. There鈥檚 a certain element of joy in tap dancing that I feel like I don鈥檛 get in many other places. When I tap dance in my ExCo, it鈥檚 all about having fun. Completely, purely about fun. I鈥檓 trying to learn new steps and do them correctly, but if I mess up or forget what step comes next, I still have a great time. I feel completely in the moment when I鈥檓 tapping; nothing else can distract me from the unadulterated joy I feel when I鈥檓 dancing.
The culminating experience for my Tap ExCo was performing in the Student Dance Showcase鈥 the first one I鈥檝e attended in my time at 91直播. Throughout the semester, everyone in my ExCo learned a standard tap dance routine called the Shim Sham, which we got to perform at the Student Dance Showcase alongside other dance ExCos and dance troupes. I had a really great time dancing in front of a crowd and seeing so many other talented student groups perform, and I鈥檓 happy my friends could come see me do the thing I鈥檝e spent all semester talking about. I鈥檓 glad that even in my fifth year I鈥檓 still getting opportunities to try new things, and I hope I can continue tap dancing in some way or another next semester!
