3 Ways Dancing Builds Self-Confidence

Dancing is not just a great physical activity that can keep you in shape, but it can also have a lot of intangible benefits mentally and emotionally.

1) Learn to get over feeling awkward.

No one likes to feel awkward in public, but with dance, sometimes that’s just part of the territory. If you’re learning a new step, it might feel a bit weird at first, but once you learn it, it becomes second nature. Then it’s less weird and hard to learn a new step. This can translate into learning new things outside of the dance world.

2) Find a community to lean on.

Dancing can run a range of emotions from happiness and pride to frustration, but finding a group of people that can support you and that you feel like you belong with can really help to boost your self-confidence.

3) Build a strong body.

If you feel physically strong and capable, it’s much easier to feel capable in other situations. When you feel healthy, that will show itself in other areas of your life, leaving you to feeling more confident and assertive.

What have you learned from dance? Let us know in the comments.

When Did the Easter Bunny Hop Onto the Scene?

When you hear the word ‘Easter’, it likely conjures images of bunnies, pastel-colored eggs, and lots of chocolate. Have you ever wondered why a rabbit brings children eggs for Easter? Why a rabbit and not a bird? It turns out that there’s a reason.

Where Did the Easter Bunny Come From?

It starts way back in the 1700’s, over 300 years ago in Germany. There they had a mythical creature called an ‘Osterhase’. This is a rabbit that lays eggs!

German children would make nests for these rabbits to lay their eggs in. The colored eggs were a present for children that behaved well throughout the year (much like how Santa Claus gives presents to good boys and girls). When Germans immigrated to the United States, they likely brought this tradition with them. The tradition has changed, as traditions tend to, and now includes chocolates and other sweets and a basket instead of a nest. 

That’s why a bunny is in charge of bringing eggs and chocolates to all the children around the world for Easter. Now that you know you can appreciate what a neat tradition this is.

What is your favorite Easter tradition?

Why Do We Decorate Eggs on Easter?

For most people, Easter is synonymous with Easter eggs! Whether it’s decorating them or hunting them or both, it’s not hard to see why the Easter egg has become so wrapped up in Easter tradition.

What came first: Easter or the egg?

Easter eggs, actually!

For many people around the world, the egg has been a symbol of new life. For thousands of years in Iran, Iranians have decorated eggs on their New Year which falls on the spring equinox, which falls usually around a month before Easter. 

But for Christians and the Easter that we’re familiar with, the Easter egg has been a symbol of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. For Eastern Catholic churches, it is quite common to see Easter eggs dyed a bright red to symbolize this. It was also common for Christians to abstain from eating eggs during Lent, so Easter was the first chance to eat eggs in weeks. Yum!

It’s all fun and games.

These fun decorated eggs are also used for games. You are probably familiar with the popular Easter egg hunts that are held around the country, but egg rolls also have a long history. The most famous egg roll actually happens on the White House lawn every Easter. 

What’s your favorite Easter tradition?