The First Dance
I was always tall for my age. In junior high, most of the boys came up to my nose, or my eye brows if I was lucky. This meant I had my fair share of awkward pre-teen, spin-in-a-circle dances where we stood at mismatched heights and far enough apart to need to avoid making eye contact with each other.
Since then, I have taken swing lessons and tango lessons to try to unlearn the circle spin. I’m not a great dancer, but I absolutely love watching people dance. Every time I had pictured myself dancing with my husband at my wedding, I would play out an elaborate routine that would wow the crowd. And even after the wedding, my husband and I were going to take all kinds of dance lessons and be that dancing couple at every party who people would watch admiringly.
The only problem was, I didn’t end up marrying a dancer.
I had asked Chris to take dance lessons with me before the wedding so we could have a cool first dance, but he was petrified. The only way he would agree to take the lessons with me was if I would allow him a contingency plan if he felt stupid or embarrassed or nervous after the lesson. The plan? To spin in a circle.
Of course I said yes, and then I prayed and prayed that we wouldn’t end up spinning in a circle on our wedding day (ok, a little dramatic). We ended up having the greatest time! Our dance instructor choreographed a jazzy waltz to the song we had chosen, and we practiced until we had it down. Chris felt confident with it, and he and I realized that we loved to dance with each other.
Our guests at the wedding cheered us on (especially during the dips and spins) and appreciated having something fun to watch. But most importantly, Chris and I loved our first dance.
Dancing in a circle is and always will be sweet because it’s the first dance between husband and wife, but to be very honest, it’s not exciting. No guest will have the heart to say that, but most will think it. If you have it in you to learn a couple of salsa moves or waltz steps, I recommend it, but if you want to stay safe and dance in a circle, then you should do it, and don’t worry about whether your guests are entertained; they will enjoy watching you enjoy yourself.
Circle spin or not for your wedding dance, I wholeheartedly recommend taking dance lessons with your husband at some point. There’s nothing like dancing with the love of your life!
