Friday was a day that I was really anticipating throughout the days leading up to it. I badly wanted to learn how to cook and I love dancing so much that I knew samba was going to be great. These activities are art forms, just like I consider playing soccer an art. Little did I know that watching these people teach me their talents would show me how I express myself through soccer, and they express themselves through their own arts.
When we got to the kitchen at our cooking school, the whole energy changed, everything became much more positive. I realized that this was because the chefs expressed themselves through their cooking. The chefs were so proud to show and teach us their talents. At the same time you could see that their cooking was a part of them by the way they expressed themselves. They wanted to share a part of themselves with us. This was no more evident then when the chefs would proudly give instructions on how to create delicacies such as the brigadeiro and this delicious fish wrapped in banana leaves. It was complex, but it was completely and wholly them.
During samba I really started to catch a theme for the day: these weren’t just activities, these were arts that these instructors fully immersed themselves into, and then expressed them. I could clearly see our samba instructor expressing himself through his dance moves, such as cleaning the floor with his feet, or catching a rhythm on the drums. He was completely in the flow state, and it was simply beautiful to watch. Once again, they took pride in expressing themselves for the betterment of our education and experience. It felt like a transfer of energy just as in the cooking.
As I got home I realized that I do the exact same thing as these instructors, but just in a different art form. Instead of cooking or dancing, I express myself through my athletic abilities, specifically soccer. I am usually a pretty confident and skilful person, and I see this within myself being externally portrayed on the soccer field. I love to dribble past guys, set up my teammates, and do moves most others wouldn’t. It made me feel proud of myself and my instructors on that great Friday, that we can use the arts we have mastered to express ourselves and also help uplift others.
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