If you can sing, you can dance.
Take me to the places on the earth that teach you how to dance, the places where you can risk letting the world break your heart. And I will take you to the places where the earth beneath my feet and the stars overhead make my heart whole again and again. Oriah Mountain Dreamer
People ask me, “What is it about Africa that keeps you going back?”
Is it the wildlife?
Yes!
Is it the people?
Yes!
Is it the land?
Yes!
Is it the singing and dancing? YES! YES! YES!
There is a visceral sense of joy and healing that comes with African singing and dancing. When I’m in Kenya and people start to dance, I can’t help but join in. My feet tap, my head and shoulders bob to the music. I sing along even when I don’t know the language. It is contagious! It is joyful. It connects us to others. It builds community.
There is a Zimbabwean Proverb that says, If you can talk, you can sing; if you can walk you can dance. As a trauma therapist I am struck by the healing aspect of song and dance that is deeply embedded in African culture. Trauma gets stored in the body unless it is processed and released. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is a sign of unprocessed trauma – symptoms include dissociation and hyper vigilance. It’s like the past is living in the present. Clients describe feeling numb, frozen, depressed, and anxious. Often uncomfortable physical symptoms accompany these feelings. Movement helps. Using our voices helps. Being aware and in our bodies in the present helps. Being in community helps.
My mentor, Angeles Arrien, a cross cultural anthropologist, described how when someone was sick or depressed the shaman would ask the patient.
1. When in your life did you stop singing?
2. When in your life did you stop dancing?
3. When in your life did you stop listening to the sweet sound of silence?
These questions take us to the heart of the origins of a problem and open a path to healing. Africans understand the power of the embodiment of acknowledging life events – the good, the bad and the ugly. When we begin to sing and dance again. When we embrace the sweet comfort of silence, we can transform trauma into healing.
The elephants of Amboseli also taught me about healing and transformation. Read all about it in my book The Wisdom of Elephants. There’s still time to order before the holidays! Get $10 off each book when you order 2 or more. Every book sale results in a $10 donation to support conservation in Kenya.