LYDIA PARK

We are very pleased to present Lydia Park as our Student of this month of December 2011.

We believe that the learner's mental attitude is the first and most important key to any learning process. Is the student excited, curious, consistent and determined to embrace the discoveries awaiting her/him on the path she/he chose? Once that has been satisfied, the role of the instructor, who is merely a humble guide on the path, is made easy. It becomes a pleasure to encourage the student on their journey.

It's been such a pleasure, to have Lydia embark on her Tango journey at Tango Magdalena. It would be best to let her express in her own words, her sentiments:

"When I first began to learn tango, it felt elusive and like it may not be for me. I would try to turn Tango into a rote-memorized map because I did not know how to do the things it was asking of me: maintain my own axis, feed energy into the joint axis, move from the "feeling" and not from the mind. Slowly, I began to understand bits. 
I remember when I finally understood the primary importance of "maintaining your own axis." I started crying because of its poignant life lesson. Jean-Pierre responded to my tears with "Good! This needs to come out. This is how you learn Tango!" I think that Tango is not something to map or mentally "get," it invites me to participate in a "to be" state that is deliciously scary and nakedly beautiful. "

The other remakable quality Lydia has exhibited is her courage; she has decided to come to the Milongas and be on the dance floor... where, after all, the learning ultimately manifests. Lidya is indeed on her way to becoming an exquisite Tango dancer and if cirmumstances of life ever call on her to be a guide to someone else, she will be a terrific one.

 

Bravo Lydia!!!! Keep it up!!!

 

Jean-Pierre Tanya and Irina