Hello there!
My name is Catherine and I am delighted to share with you something about myself and how I came into contact with The 'Dance of Life' - Biodanza.
I am the eldest of eight and come from the West of Ireland, in Co. Galway. We grew up on a farm close to the sea off Galway Bay and across from the Burren Mountains in Clare - a very pleasant and unspoilt area with spectacular views.

I spent lots of time while growing up, helping my parents on the farm sowing and harvesting the crops, feeding the farm animals and helping my mother with the normal household chores. I realize now that growing up close to the sea and on a farm influenced my life greatly - gave me a real sensitivity towards nature. My father and mother's deep care for the animals was very inspiring for me.  I sensed at some deep level within myself that all life is special,has its unique role to play and that it deserves respect and admiration.

I suppose here is where I began to connect with our earth community in a unique way - soon I learned about the inter-connectedness of all life within our Universe. We (human and earth community) are part of the Cosmic Way of Being and together on the Great Universal Journey as part of THE GREAT COSMIC DANCE OF LIFE.


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Relaxing with Nature

Growing up brought me through many different stages of growth in my life and during some of those stages I seemed to have lost (for a while) some of my original awareness of the connectedness of all in the One Cosmic Life-Dance.
I had allowed myself to get too engrossed in the hustle bustle of daily activities together with the rules and regulations of church and religious life and failed to take notice of the 'unspoken mystery in all of creation'.
I yearned for something more in my life and so the search continued.
Eventually I was blessed in been able to make some surprising discoveries through workshops, conferences, holistic health, poetry, and especially through my many rich experiences with my indigenous friends in both Mexico and Peru where I worked for nine enriching years. I also learned a lot from my companions on the journey.

While working as a missionary in Peru I was introduced to Biodanza by a friend who encouraged me to 'try on' this 'Dance therapy'  My first experience of a Biodanza Session felt unusual and also pleasant. There was also something about it that drew me back for more. One can never really explain an exact experience to another as this is unique to the person themselves. All I knew was that I was going to try this out more and allow myself time to really see if this was for me.

I was moved each time by the welcoming and trusting connections people made in the group with each other (people who had never met before)I began to notice people's faces changing and becoming more Alive.
I noticed people's inhibitions melting away (including my own) as we became more at home with each other and free to express ourselves . I felt the joy of being Alive and open to all the new possibilities before me.
After about six sessions I decided that this was for me and so I decided to commit myself to this process. I could feel in my body some new and subtle changes of aliveness and freedom. After a year attending Biodanza Sessions I felt drawn to become a teacher of Biodanza so I joined the Training School of Biodanza in Peru.  
 
From my own spiritual re-awakening, it became clear to me that dance and spirituality are very much connected. I also became aware that we are invited to become part of that Great Dance Movement of Life that goes on every moment within our universe - a universe that is being held in the embrace of the Great Spirit.
There was a time when I would not have thought that a stinging nettle, a spiders web or a wild shark to have had a life connected with mine.
I now believe that everything is connected, that God/Goddess/ Spirit/ All that Is/ is everywhere and that the purpose of life is to be in communion with All That Is.
It is then I become connected with my sacred self, the sacredness of others and All Life.

My spirituality exists in the present moment and when I am fully present, life is gift/blessing/sacred.
I have surprisingly discovered that everything in my life can be significent enough to enable me to reflect, re-connect and reveal an aspect of the sacred.

'My spirituality exists in the present moment' This is all I'm sure of in life.

A Teaching moment during 'Dance of Life' Workshop

An Awe-Inspiring Moment

The Dance of Life

The Dance of Life - Biodanza offers us an opportunity to nurture our soul and celebrate being alive.
In our modern society our lives become fragmented and in-coherent with our true nature as human BEINGS.
The creator of Biodanza- Rolando Toro Arenada from Chile believes that the human being is a totality of body, mind and spirit and any therapy which does not address all these aspects of the human being is disassociative.
 For example, every process of change must involve the body in its diverse systems: neurological, endocrine, immunological and emotional.
The body, the mind and the brain are inseparable. The mind is in every cell in the body.
One of the important philosophical paradigms fundamental to Biodanza is that all the universe and life forms are organized in function of promoting life.
In 'Dance of Life' we become aware of our deep connection with all life and we establish a loving and caring relationship with nature.

We are all connected in the One Dance of Life

To Be Alive is a Dance

Awakening our innate Potential of Aliveness and Self-Expression through the 'Dance of Life'

One of my favourite Sculpture Symbols- 'Reaching Out Heart' at Rosses Point in beautiful Sligo

Another Spectacular View I cherished while travelling towards Sligo one evening.