I don’t dream much beyond the present most of the time. So when I had finally fulfilled my heart's desire to dance with Ad Deum Dance Company in Houston, I was pretty clueless as to what I should do next. My greatest desire was that it somehow include resting and slowing down my life-pace.
I quit the dance company after performing for four years (originally I figured I'd be "down south" 1-5 years). So now it was time to figure the rest out. I ended up waiting, sometimes patiently, sometime not so patiently, for a reason to move “up north.” I didn’t know that it was going to be a long wait; it lasted a year!
During one of my visits with the founder/director of Ad Deum, he handed me a book simply because he thought I should read it. It was about the life of Alvin Ailey. I enjoyed the book and learned a lot. I was glad to know more about American dance history, but thought that its usefulness wouldn’t go much deeper than that.
I figured since I accomplished my first dream to dance with Ad Deum I should come up with a new dream and shoot for that. So I auditioned for the on/off Broadway show “Lion King.” I flew to Atlanta and Orlando, staying with friends and going to the auditions. Soon I realized no matter how hard I pursued it, I would never have the right “look” they were looking for. So I decided to move on.
Being single still and feeling fulfilled that I had done everything I imagined for myself to do as a singe woman, I changed my focus to moving somewhere where I thought I could spend the rest of my life. I looked to Ann Arbor, Michigan because of its location to my family and close college friends. I found a dance school and company I thought would be nice to work for and applied. Eventually I found my dream house to rent, everything seemed to be lining up. But very slowly…
I remembered a fascination I had for Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival so I looked on their website to see if there was anything I could do for the upcoming summer season to “kill time” until the job in Michigan was official. The first several times I looked nothing was posted of interest to me. Finally, a few weeks before the festival was scheduled to start I found a summer job that interested me. I applied, though it was likely not available anymore; I figured at least there was no harm in trying. Wouldn’t you know I got the job and was on my way out of Houston.
My attempt to get a job in Michigan lasted all summer, finally my second interview in Michigan was scheduled for a few days after leaving Jacob’s Pillow.
During the summer I met a ton of wonderful people, and a handful of them were talking about moving or returning to New York City. One person in particular worked for Alvin Ailey Dance Company and reiterated my previous experiences that anyone I’ve ever met who works for Alvin Ailey is truly wonderful, therefore it would be a great place to work. So, when I heard my twin brother was moving to New York City it “sealed the deal,” I thought, “I should see if the Ailey organization is hiring… just in case Michigan doesn’t work out.” No other set of circumstances would have EVER allowed me to consider moving to New York City in a favorable light.
Sure enough, Ailey had a job posting that fit my expertise. However, I heard very little from the Ailey organization after submitting my resume and thought the little prayer I whispered while sending it off had no affect; I figured they had already found someone.
So when my second interview in Michigan made me feel like a crash and burn victim I felt completely lost. I drove back to my parent’s house. During the three-hour-long drive I cried and confronted God with my concerns. I wouldn’t mind living at my parent’s house for a little bit, but how long would it last?
I was at my lowest point during the drive when I received a phone call from the Ailey organization; they wanted to know if I would still be interested in the job! Of course! I flew out the next day to do an interview. After three days of interviews I was offered the job. I was so caught off guard, I felt like I was having an out of body experience. Or maybe it was more like a rude awakening; I never intended this for myself. But after making the move it didn’t take long for me to realize that I actually enjoy living in The City, more than I ever thought possible.
This experience has reminded me of a beautiful scripture, Ephesians 3:20 “…God is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine…”. I’m not sure what is next; all I know is that God is good and the only thing He requires of me is my life. So I am giving it to Him with each step, one step at a time.
