Better When We're Dancing

I’m a line dance girl. Anytime one comes on, I rush to the dance floor. Quite possibly, there’s no greater rush of adrenaline than the intro of “Footloose.”

I remember my high school prom. “Footloose” came on, and I ran to the dance floor. Naturally, I assumed many others would follow, but instead, I think I was one of four people doing the line dance (granted, it was a small school). I remember thinking “why am I one of the only ones doing this dance? It’s the best line dance there is!”

Fast forward to college, and I was standing on a dance floor in a pool of poodle skirts and leather jackets doing the “Cha Cha Slide” with nearly everyone on campus. Maybe college kids just like to dance more, or maybe my opinion of “Footloose” being the best line dance is inaccurate, but the difference in the spirit of those two places was incredible. As a college student who didn’t really care what she looked like cha cha-ing on the dance floor, I felt the liberating aura we created just through a song, and for a moment, we could all dance in perfect unison without any distractions from the world.

I never really understood why I loved a good dance party so much until that moment. I grew up around dance and was a proud show choir kid, so I constantly had a little jig in my head, but to me, dancing with people always produced one of the purest forms of joy. In my poodle skirt that night, I noticed how all of the people in that room just stopped what they were doing and took their place on the dance floor. And might I say, they did the same thing for “Footloose” later.

See, everyone has a spot on the dance floor, because everyone has a temple that can produce liveliness. I believe God designed our bodies to act out of joy, and moving them produces a contagious spirit of comfort and contentment with our bodies. Dancing shows confidence without saying anything, and it releases the natural mood booster, dopamine.

Dancing also releases endorphins, which makes it a natural painkiller. Dancing is the one moment where everyone can join together and bond over one thing: the melody. It’s a painkiller because it’s unifying. When a familiar tune comes on and everyone rushes to the dance floor, all of our outside cares seem to fade away for approximately three minutes.

We need that kind of natural pain killer in our everyday lives, not for our flesh, but for our souls. If we could all dance through life, I think our world would be a more harmonious place. Yet, we walk through life caring too much. We care too much about the way we look, the things we have, the people and policies our friends vote for, and the things that hurt us. We walk through life caring, and because we care about the things that bring us down, we walk through life lonely.

Our world is cold, but thankfully we have a God who is willing to dance with His children. Dance with God and His will and grace in gladness. Dance in the rain if you want to; dance in your car; dance at a wedding; dance with your friends; dance in a TikTok; dance with joy in your heart. I promise a little hair flip or even a little shimmy will make your day brighter, but even when you can’t actually get up and dance, do a little eight-count in your heart of hope, praise, and optimism that encourages those around you to exude the same. Get over the embarrassment. Dance on earth like nobody's watching. Dance for the glory of God, and one day, I believe we’ll be dancing like we've never danced before in heaven.

A Love Letter to my Readers

What if I told you that every action should be a love letter? It’s February, and suddenly you’re insanely inspired while sporting your red or pink top and heart-shaped accessories replaying rom com scenes in your head (Sweet Home Alabama or How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days is probably on my agenda). But seriously, every action beyond Valentine’s Day truly should come from a place of love.

I am a HUGE fan of Valentine’s Day- the red and pink color combo, the excuse to wear cheap gaudy heart earrings, the cheesy T.J.Maxx decorations from the clearance section… it gives me all the warm, fuzzy, whimsical feels. I think we can all agree that our pupils gleam a little brighter when we open a box of conversation hearts and soak up the bright colors and witty sayings.

Why do these almost gimmicky pieces of a holiday make us feel this way? Well, at their core, they represent love. No matter what your relationship status is, the true meaning of love is something to celebrate because it’s one of the purest, authentic, optimistic attributes you can give to this world.

Love is powerful. With every greeting you give your professor (even on the days of exams), embrace you offer your dog, call you make to your grandma, and text you send your friends, they should notice your love. You should let all that you do, even the little things, be done in love.

So, in the spirit of defining, outlining, and inspiring love, I’ve written and love letter to you, my readers:

Dear friends,

First, I want you to know how loved you are by our Father. You are held, called, and made strong. Because of His love, you can love too.

Love comes from humility and peace, and it is important to a) recognize the love that has been given to you and b) replicate the love that has been given to you. We love, truly, because He first loved us.

Love drowns out negativity and motivates the soul. Love is craved in every corner of this world.

I hope my encouragement to sprinkle love makes you feel loved. I’ve found that humans are most encouraged when they’re encouraging and flowing with positivity, so I want to lovingly encourage you to exude love in your everyday steps.

To shower you with love, let me offer some pieces of advice:

• Take a moment every day to reflect on the little things that bring you joy. Those are the things you love. The sunshine needs your appreciation, your pet needs your attention, your music library needs your ear. Learn to love those things to the fullest, if they align with what is good and true.

• Find a place in your heart for everyone you meet. Everyone deserves a smile, a handshake, and a prayer. Even if you don’t know them by name or will likely never see them again, you can open up your heart by flashing sincerity with your teeth. If you redirect your thoughts to see the positive instead of the negative, loving people will become a piece of cake.

• Love your place and every moment in it. You are sitting, standing, living, breathing, eating where you’re at for a reason. Even if you’re on aisle 7 at Walmart looking for dental floss, you’re still there for a reason. Appreciate your surroundings, and love that you have been placed in someone’s path to share a breath of life or a few seconds of the day with them.

• Look at yourself (when you pass your mirror or open your snapchat camera, whatever you have to do to get a good look), and admire the person you are. Don’t look at yourself conceitedly or only admire your new hairdo, but look at your eyes that are used to see the good. Look at your lips that speak words of affirmation. Look at your hands that craft work and assignments. Look at your ears that hear the beauty of people’s voices. Know that every part of you is beautifully capable of stirring up a revolution of love to those around you. You have every tool you need.

I believe in you, and I believe in your heart. These simple actions are achievable through an open heart and a Christlike mentality. Let’s celebrate the meaning and power of harmonious love beyond this holiday, and let’s make every action a love letter.

Love,

Kaelin

3 Reminders for 2023

One of the strangest feelings is writing down a new year when you date something. Thankfully, you can add a little tail at the bottom of a two to make it a three if you mistakenly write “2022” instead of “2023.” The idea of out-of-habit writing isn’t even the strangest component to this action, though. The strangest feeling that writing down a new year brings us is the whiff of a fresh start.

The feeling of a fresh start is often associated with positive emotions, but you can’t stay stuck in negativity to experience the new year to its fullest. As you’re adjusting to 2023, I want to leave you with a few reminders:

1. You can open your planner and pencil in events for all twelve months, but that won’t change the year God has in store for you.

Openly, I’ve always been the kind of girl that puts a timestamp on everything. I’m a DIY girl, and I’m not talking about crafts. If I can do it myself, I will. I tend to take matters into my own hands when it comes to planning because I like to hold the reins, but Ecclesiastes 3 reminds me that God makes everything beautiful in its own time.

Earlier in chapter 3, verses 1-8 say this:

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to throw away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.”

Seasons of life ceaselessly come and go, and we can’t determine the timespan of any one season or determine when that season will, or even if it will, look like the life we’ve always dreamt of building. Proverbs 16:9 says, “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.”

You can try to fight it off, but God’s plan will always prevail. So, whatever worries, goals, or intentions you're taking in with you to 2023, address them through prayer, but then lay them at His feet because for everything there is a season and a reason.

2. Time is moving faster than you think, but don’t fret, just appreciate the preciousness of life.

2022 went by in the blink of an eye. We all felt it, and in fact, I don’t know if time has truly felt the same since the world was quarantined for a few months in 2020. Those monumental moments, no matter how celebratory or terrifying, like a global pandemic, weddings, illnesses, graduations, or moving into a new home tend to hit the fast-forward button on life.

For me, the recent speed adjustment in my life happened just a couple of weeks ago when I found out that my sweet dog Maggie has cancer. I’m very grateful and hopeful that it can be removed, but even with an optimistic outlook on this, I felt life jump just a little bit.

I was fourteen when my family brought Maggie home, and suddenly she’s six while I’m away from her in a dorm room most of the time. She stayed a puppy in my mind for so long, and there is nothing sweeter than puppy love.

Her adolescent-like snuggles and playfulness both remind me that even when the life you once knew as a child seems to fade away, your core remains.

Life is precious, and I think it’s such a gift that the heart you carry with you in the womb, on the playground, across the stage at graduation, to your workplace, at the family gatherings you host, and into retirement is the same heart that will beat until your very last breath.

That heart that keeps on beating through every stage of life holds your deepest desires in life, and the Lord cares for your desires. Even when you feel like you can’t catch up to the rate life is moving, He remains near to your heart, and that remains constant. In fact, Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Take in all the moments your life has to offer, romanticize the little things, and grasp the joy that’s found in the Lord’s tender care for you. Know that He is near to your heart if you accept Him, and that brings appreciation and meaning to every step.

3. You don’t have to take yourself too seriously.

I want the last thing you read in my post to really make you feel good. So, truly, don’t take yourself seriously. I used to be scared of my quirky side, but the true Kaelin that God so carefully knit together is much more comfortable skin to live in because it’s the skin that fits me best.

Notoriously, I walk fast. I am like that grandma who goes to the mall to get her power walk in. Her arms are swinging, her head is bopping, and she is ready to roll. Now, that’s me everytime I walk to class, and in fact it has resulted in me tripping several times. I call myself a bee-bopper.

Hear me out, as a pageant girl, I know how to walk in a pair of heels and turn on the grace when I need to (afterall, it is my middle name), but for some reason, I get a little giddy when I walk on a regular ole day; I’m looking at the clouds, talking on the phone, sipping my extra shot of espresso, and suddenly a crack in the concrete does not compliment my little size 5 ½ feet.

You’ve heard the Miss Congeniality quote “She’s beauty, she’s grace, she’s Miss United States.” Well, I’ve heard it said about me, “She’s beauty, she’s grace, she’ll fall on her face,” and that never fails to make me laugh.

My point is, sometimes, we get too embarrassed to live too much. We get too embarrassed to run across the crosswalk at the last few seconds of the countdown; we get too embarrassed to ask for extra whipped cream on our latte because we’re terrified of having a whipped stache on our coffee date (maybe not the best idea, but who cares); we get too embarrassed to step on the treadmill at the busy gym; we get too embarrassed to shift our focus on nature or a good conversation when we walk because we’re scared we just might trip or run into a tree.

So what if you trip in front of the cute boy? So what if he spots a little whipped cream on your face? So what if your thighs don’t look exactly how you want them to when you run? So what if your boss is the one that spots you running across the crosswalk on your way to work? We’re only human, and life happens, so you may as well find joy in the same things you would laugh about on a movie screen. You can’t choose to be perfect, but you can choose to be happy. Relax. Take a deep breath, and remember nothing is that big of a deal.

So, to wrap up, let me give you one last verse to set the tone of your year:

“A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” - Proverbs 17:22