I’ve always been the kind of person who notices everything but doesn’t say much. My friends say I'm quiet, and they’re right. I’m not the type to raise my hand first or talk to someone new. Being shy has always felt like a burden. Yet, I always find myself back to the one place where those burdens come down. When I dance, those burdens disappear. Dance has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. I don’t remember a time I wasn’t associated with dance in some type of way. Whenever I lose a bit of confidence in my dancing, my mom reminds me that when I was very little, I used to dance in front of the TV, wishing I was the one on the screen. But back then it wasn’t about performing; it was just about being free and having fun. As I got older, dance seemed to just become an extracurricular activity I'd do when I was bored. I lost passion for dancing, or at least I thought.

When I came to high school from being homeschooled, I wasn’t expecting to be put under so much pressure. The schoolwork frustrated me and made me feel like I was bound to fail. But even when it got worse, being away from my computer, getting to take a deep breath and dance in the studio took away all my worries. It brought me back to that place with no burdens; it brought me back home. To a home still filled with passion deep down inside.

For me, everything changed when I got accepted into the Italian dance program. When I saw the email, I thought it was a mistake. How could the sponsor choose me to go to Italy for dance? I felt proud at first, but then I got scared. What if I weren't good enough? What if everyone were way better than me? Italy was exciting and scary at the same time, as I would be traveling and dancing on the other side of the globe. Also, I didn’t speak much Italian, so I was thankful there were many people who spoke English. On the very first day of class, my anxiety was all over the place. The room was full of college girls, while only my four school classmates and I were high school students. Everyone was so serious and confident, like they belonged there. Everyone but me. Then the classes started, and everything changed. For the first time in a while, I forgot how to be scared. Even though everyone seemed so serious in the face, we all had fun. Everyone let loose and just danced.

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