Dancing Into Imbolc
Dina writes about the power of liberated movement for wholeness of being and balance within this season.
The first bright bloom of Daffodil opens in Dina’s Garden, as Imbolc approaches.
I can’t really believe how quickly we are galloping into 2026, entering the Imbolc time of year. This mid-season slice of life is one of the most exciting events of our solar dance! I smell it in the slightly warmer air. I hear it in the Birdsong that has been muted for months. I see it in the tiny buds on rangy-armed fruit Trees. I feel it in the delight of the first Daffodil, the singular non-sleeping beauty Rose, the emergent surreal sherbert-orange Quince flowers! This is the season to rejoice in the knowledge that warmer, longer days are ahead, and the shadow-season is passing in the rearview.
But first, I know I must recalibrate. My body tells me that the cold, dark, introversion of the season has an awkward cadence that I never quite adjust to. You see, I’m a shadow-seeker, morning-lover, soloist. With the reverse time change, I hibernate by 8pm at the latest, awaken at 4am (sometimes earlier) as I delve into the deep soils of Ancestor work and the depth exploration of my soul-inherited challenges. It’s heavy stuff, and so this season that holds a slight twinkling of early spring light, fills me with vigor and hope.
I recently learned how to create more balance during the darker months by dancing more. And not just in the kitchen. This last New Year’s Eve, I bought a ticket for an Ecstatic Dance event, not sure if I would go. I didn’t know what to expect, except for their guidelines: no talking, no shoes, no phones, no substances, only approach another person if given non-verbal consent, no judgement…
Flash forward to an hour into the evening. The DJ is pumping a heavy set, bouncing between classic 90’s hip hop and current electronica. My eyes are mostly closed, and I feel the aliveness of my muscles, my blood rising, the energy of the room bumping, and I realize that this is my new club scene! As a young woman in the late ‘80s, every Sunday night I would leave my house at 11pm to attend “Metal Church” at the iconic Limelight in NYC. There I felt the most free. Velvet wallpapered hallways led to variously vibed rooms. I always found myself on the middle of the dancefloor in the “Club Room”, amid a mixture of humans of every color, gender, and religion. It was exhilarating and sublime, and the best part about it was that it was a community of beings sharing in non-judgmental joy. No one knew what anyone else was like during daylight hours, and no one cared. It was this night, once a week, where we could join in unity and fly our freak flags.
To be able to feel into the liberation of somatic awareness and decide to move with spontaneity and joy, is a gift of being human. For myself, as a trauma survivor, reclaiming a sense of empowerment over my body, has been a crucial step towards wholeness of being. Through the years I’ve regaled my kids with stories of my powerful club experiences; encouraging them to go clubbing as a way to experience a blissful state of self-expression with others–a collaboration with humanity, rooted in physical freedom. It’s my hope that my experience might inspire you to find your vibe, within the rhythms of life; that you may connect more deeply with your body, through a love of movement, that nourishes the soul.