we are dancing all over Brittany - most nights of the week there is Scottish dancing somewhere !

Last Sunday I danced on the coast of the Côtes d'Armor. This next Sunday I shall be dancing in Josselin, in the centre of Brittany, where the RSCDS Breton Branch will have its monthly dance : easy dances from 10am and more complex dances in the afternoon. Friday I danced in Lannion; Tuesdays I dance in Guingamp or in St Quay Perros; Mondays I sometimes dance in Rennes .... and we have a monthly Ceilidh (on the Last Sunday of every month) in Pordic, near St Brieuc. naturally, our whole approach seeks to place Scottish culture in Europe, even if the English prefer their Brexit.

Dancing is good for you.

Dancing is the most complete exercise for the body and the brain; and to these physical assets, the music brings psychological soothing while the dance groups provide social health and conviviality.  Scottish dance improves balance, while the teamwork involved in dancing the formations together contributes a different type of balance and adds very beneficial social interactions. 

Researchers have proved than DANCING IS GOOD FOR YOU !!!!!

St Andrews Day, Nov 30th: since we cannot dance, let us celebrate with this portrait of Bonny Prince Charlie, leader of the 1745 rebellion against England's imported German kings from Hanover. Prince Charles Edward Stuart is kissing the hand of Flora MacDonald .... the lady who helped the prince escape Over The Sea To Skye after his defeat by "Butcher Cumberland" (son of George II) at the Battle of Culloden on 15th April 1746. That was the end of the Stuart challenge. Bonny Prince Charlie lived the rest of his life in France, and is buried in the chapel of the Scottish College, beside the Sorbonne.
 

Can we start dancing in September?????

What the French call "Contre danses" - referring to the set-lines where we are standing opposite our partners at regulation confinement distance of 6 feet - means that Scottish dancers and English Country Dancers are better protected from virus transmission that other dancers. Janet McCrorie's picture "Clasp" (top) shows how we may need adjustments: her second picture "Ceilidh Spin" reduces face-to-face impact. Her dancers even seem to be wearing masks. This may be how we should dance if we want to restart in September. AND THAT IS WHAT WE WANT!!

Two joyful portraits to raise your confined spirits

REP visiting RSCDS Edinburgh in 2019; and my son's portrait of me in 1980 when I looked fresher and young Edward was four years old at French pre-school. He might have been a Picasso, but he neglected his artistic talent - and even his Highland Dancing medals - to become a lawyer.

Still dancing .... but now I dance in my head

 Gil, Elisabeth, Don and Bern are all great dance friends - despite his choice of tie, Bern is a good guy and a great dancer and you can see him and me dance The Shepherd's Crook on YouTube :

www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5zYM44uwjM

and this was me last year visiting Coates Crescent in Edinburgh, the HQ of the RSCDS. If coronavirus confinement limits our physical dancing, it does not reduce our passion for dancing, nor our dreams of dancing with beautiful women in a great strathspey set. What is a "beautiful woman"? She is a great dancer. Dancing makes a woman beautiful. And a man?

The kilt makes a man beautiful.

I danced with Paris RSCDS at their 35th anniversary Ball. I had a good time, with some great dancing to music played by Parisians led by The Black Bear duet from Brisbane. What a great evening! Merci à nos amis de Paris. I met Antoine Rousseau for the first time, and he is a wonderful dancer! Even when I was young, I do not believe I danced as elegantly as Antoine. Antoine dancing the poussette with Emma was a dream come true! I must definitely return to Paris - where I used to dance in the 1970s with the parents of Patrick Chamoin, both of whom were rigorous RSCDS dance teachers..

 Dancing has started again after the Summer break. Dancing with young people (even with very young people) is not only important, but lovely to do. My book (below) argues that dance teachers should commit to teaching children as well as adults, or they should not receive RSCDS certificates
because we are killing the dance culture that we love if we do not teach our kids. My children Edward and Catherine (shown on the book cover) dance very well. So should all our children.
This book is full of wisdom and dancing, stories and laughter: the perfect gift for your friends.

Scottish country and highland from #Janet McCrorie

Two more beautiful pictures from my favourite dance painter, sold to support #RSCDS. 

A second Janet McCrory dance painting

Painted for the RSCDS and reproduced here with Janet's permission.
This wonderful movement is called Birlin' Blue. It could be me and Moira.
I wish it was: Thistle School has just started and Oh! Alas!  I am not dancing!

 The beauty of Scotland is most perfectly captured by the rainbow across Skye above, Scottish tartans, Scottish dancing, and my lovely dancing children below (20 years ago, I should add).

Still fit and healthy and still dancing, but I do need a haircut

Like my new hat, though :  it suits my new hair styling

What is the most beautiful part of a woman's body?

If you are a dancer, it is the feet - obviously ... followed by the smiling eyes.  So look after your feet: wooden sprung floors, gentle stretching before and after dancing, and cool them off in cold water.

I am going off to dance near Vannes this weekend, in Séné on the beautiful southern coast of Brittany where I shall see several of the ladies who star in my book I DANCE THEREFORE I AM -  some of whom were also my very kind readers. It will be relaxed and friendly, as Scottish dances always are. Here is a memory of Burns Night in Séné. All these kilted figures are French and Breton. Is this not a wonderful tribute to the joys of dancing, to the strength of Scottish culture and the RSCDS?

I must start reminding people to buy the book I DANCE, THEREFORE I AM. Advertising is beginning this month in the country dance journals. Please tell your networks that it is amusing and filled with wisdom about life, as well as about dancing.

Ode to Robert Burns and Ode to a Haggis

Wishing everyone a wonderful Burns weekend, celebrating his contributions to culture and music, to the Scottish Enlightenment and to cavorting with beautiful women who inspired many of his famous poems and songs: Bonnie Jean, Highland Mary and others. And Hail to the Haggis!
I enjoyed eating haggis with the excellent RSCDS and Scotia dancers of New York.
After Ode to a Haggis, I recommend you all make a YouTube visit to hear Murray Lachlan Young's
Ode to a Scrotum. It is hilarious.

Dancing recovery: pacing yourself

I had a wonderful New Year Hogmanay Party in Philadelphia (Germantown) with 100 other top Scottish dancers from all over the region. Music was led by my gifted composer friend and pianist Dave Wiesler, who played non-stop from 8.30 pm until 2.30 am and accepted all our requests for repeats. A musical marathon!  We enjoyed THE LAST DANCE OF THE OLD YEAR, had a break for snacks and Auld Lang Syne, and then started the FIRST DANCE OF THE NEW YEAR,  - the most wonderful Delaware Valley Hogmanay party. I am now back in Brooklyn with Michelle, Catherine Leila, Khaled and beautiful 3-week-old Emmy. Of course, after 5 hours of dancing every muscle in my body ached and so I have rested - back tomorrow Monday on the dance floor with the Scotia Dancers in New York.

 

My friend and dance teacher Moira Turner, who at this moment is running with her husband John, the champion Scottish fiddler, the Jink and Diddle fiddle school, found this piece of embroidered wisdom in a log cabin in North Carolina: "When you stumble, make it part of the dance."
That is true for dancing as it is true for life!
I often tell intermediate dancers that I make plenty of mistakes when I dance; but because I am very experienced, I am skillful in converting my stumbles into the dance. I remember one demonstration led by Moira in Richmond, where I made an error that even Moira did not notice. To err is human; covering up your stumbles elegantly demands real dancing skills!  

I Danced in New York last night

Good dancing and good teaching at the RSCDS New York Branch Thursday: thanks for your hospitality guys! Most of my partners had good posture: since that is my obsession of the week. As I say in my book: a good posterior is nothing without good posture. Here are some artistic photos of my dance evening in Manhattan.

Mother loved a man with good posture

My Mother used to say (where have you heard that before?) that SHE LOVED MEN WITH GREAT POSTURE. So pull those shoulders back, keep your chin up and keep your butt in: just as you do when you are standing in the set lines for a Scottish dance and smiling at your elegant partner. Military training is not good for peace, but it is good for posture.

A lovely review of my dance book

I just received a lovely message - A BOOK REVIEW - from Katja, one of my former peace building assistants, a talented pianist and brilliant linguist who is now hiding away in Rome with her beautiful new baby boy (he is beautiful if he looks anything like Katja): "The book is really amazing and so sweet, and I am already sad thinking it will be over soon. You should write more of this kind, I wish every grandfather did it for their grandchildren really! Your stories of childhood and life allover the globe are super interesting and the way you describe them, it's just so much fun!! I really miss you, and miss laughing with you."
ONLY $15 for the paperback from Amazon: the perfect witty and quotable Christmas gift.  BUY NOW!