Karen Malek inspires with a message of hope
With the New Year in full swing, Transit Dance co-founder and Director of Education, Karen Malek, shares some her thoughts on the new decade and asks What does 2020 mean to you?
Have a read of her inspirational message here, or watch the video of her full address at the bottom of this article.
Hi everyone and Happy New Year!
Welcome to 2020, the year of Vision – learning, growing, moulding into the new improved you.
Why new? Because everyday is a revelation, a footprint on your journey of life. Yes, some days run into each other because your life course as a student is up, breakfast, school, dance or other activity, sleep, repeat or as a parent, up breakfast, school drop off, work, activity drop offs or picks ups, dinner, sleep, repeat.
So, is your journey boring? I hope not. Think about finding something in everyday that brings you joy – it could simply be smiling at someone and having them smile at you in return – a complete stranger. It could be that you participated in a conversation at school that really helped others or someone else’s statement/thoughts helped you on some deeper level or brought clarity to something you have been thinking about.
Spread kindness wherever you go. Say thank you for the drop off or pick up from school or dance classes. Hold the door for someone if you have a chance – perhaps their arms are full – it doesn’t matter if they are older, younger or the same age or even someone you don’t particularly have much to do with. Spread that kindness and sprinkle it all around.
Kindness begets kindness and joy begets joy. We could all find something wrong in our day, something to complain about. Which one do you find? Complaining? Why not try switching that up and look for the joy in your day and focus on that. Then when chatting about your day with your family tell them about the great thing that happened.
Do you have a journal? Write down the date and the thing that was joyful to you. Write down one kind thing you did or had done to you. Write down if you are concerned about anything – sometimes the act of writing it down is a release because then it’s gone …..
What does 2020 mean to you?
The start of new beginnings? The journey to the new, improved you? It is for you to decide.
Perhaps you just want to improve. Perhaps you want to mentor younger students or help your teacher in some way. Perhaps you want to help your parents. Perhaps you want to make a difference in your grades at school.
Have you considered spending less time on social media? Have you checked to see how long you spend on social media? How could you better spend that time? All considerations on your journey to finding more time to do the things you love.
For parents, I want you to know that even though dance can get costly, so can other activities. What is it about dance and your child/children that makes the decision to continue such an easy one? Is it because your child/children are becoming more confident with each passing year? It is because their school grades are excellent? Think of the benefits of high co-ordination skills honed and developed in dance class – these skills benefit learning, your children will have greater bone density, fabulous deportment and more. The benefits are far reaching. You are investing in your child’s/children’s future.
For students, I want you to know that the work ethic you develop in dance classes with assist you with your school work. I want you to know that you may or may not appreciate the sacrifices that your parents make in order to allow you to take dance as an after school activity. If you haven’t given this much thought before, perhaps it’s time or you are now old enough to consider this amazing gift your parents are giving you.
I do hope that you might all consider what 2020 will bring you, what is important to you and how you can go about achieving these goals. Perhaps it’s time for you to hone your skills to become the best version of you possible …. Good luck with reflecting on these thoughts and I look forward to speaking with again very soon.
Watch the full video from Karen Malek below.