North by Northwestern

It’s getting close to Dance Marathon, and the anxieties are growing.  We had the first mandatory all-dancer meeting last week. Though it was meant to provide information and encourage participants to continue raising money up until the deadline, the meeting was a tad scary. As a first-time dancer, the idea of staying up for 30 hours is a little daunting; adding the task of constant movement makes it seem like the fuel for nightmares. I was so excited before — what happened?

A Powerpoint ran slides about the full-money deadline, preparations, an overview of the weekend, and the themes for each block. I sat in Leverone watching and listening as the Dancer Relation Co-Chairs did their best to be peppy while explaining that after you have signed in, you cannot leave until DM is over. I was definitely getting more and more nervous as the presentation continued.

The themes were fun and exciting, although a couple were a little confusing (aBLOCKalypse, for example). Appealing to everyone’s love of dressing up and getting down, I was definitely able to suspend my worry to enjoy the members of the Dancer Relations teams modeling the outfits for each theme. The touching story of one of the B+ Heroes definitely lightened my heart and reminded me why I was participating in the first place.

I am worried, but I am also really excited for the event. My roommate and I are instating a 12 a.m. bedtime for the week before Dance Marathon. We are holding mandatory dance parties in our room as a form of exercise and as practice for the weekend. We are trying to research new dances because we are worried that we will run out of dance moves during the 30 hours.

What I am the most excited about, though, is the feeling of unity that accompanies Dance Marathon. While I like to think that there is no North-South divide and I could talk to an engineer just as easily as a fellow SESP-er, inside that tent, there really will no difference. It will be hot, sweaty, and emotional, but everyone will be together as one school. The participants in DM will be connected because we all have the same goals: to survive the 30 hours and to help the kids who need us.  

Physically, I am ready. I am excited and nervous but I know it will all be worth it. I need to pack my bag and clear my head to get ready for the best weekend of my life.