One, two, three. One, two, three.
Three young men want to learn to dance. Each starts with the basic waltz, a simple box step. This is new, strange and a bit uncomfortable. To help, they follow a pattern of footsteps painted on the floor.
Young, excited and unsure of themselves, they each follow the painted pattern closely — one slow step at a time. As they practice, they get more confident, move faster and finally say, “Yes! I can dance the waltz!”
But the instructor says, “Now, let’s add some music!” At first, this added element throws them off. But soon, they sense the rhythm, match their box-step movements to the beat, and the pattern starts to flow. It comes together, and with some added practice they each say, “Now I can dance the waltz!”
However the instructor says, “Now, you get to waltz with a partner." With that, it all falls apart. Each one almost has to start over again. After a few false starts, they are moving, but they stare at the ground, following the pattern in their head. One, two, three; one, two, three. Try not to step on her toes.
After a few lessons, they have it. Finally each can say, “Now, I really can dance the waltz.”
Fast-forward 10 years. The three dance students have gone their separate ways. But they are asked to return for a survey by the dance studio. The survey is simple. A single checkbox: Yes or No — Can you dance the waltz?
Each one smiles, and checks the box, “Yes!" However, the one administering the survey has a follow-up request: “Choose a dance partner. Please show me how you dance the waltz.”
The first fellow selects his partner and stands at the ready. He looks at the floor to visualize the pattern, and performs the box-step pattern, in place, exactly right. The one-two-three waltz executed to perfection. The partner is dancing too, within the constrained little box provided by his lead. The “Yes” check box is verified; the dance ended.
The second man and his partner begin. The box pattern quickly gives way to an advanced waltz with varied steps; turning and dignified. The dance moves from a tiny box space to range in freedom around the dance floor. An elegant Venetian ballroom comes to mind. The partners converse and enjoy the dance. The simple box pattern is lost in innovation and variation, conversation and music. His check box is also verified, but this time there is an added grace and charm.
The final dancer has a confident look and a smile when he asks for the most accomplished dancer there to join him. As they move forward he glances at the painted steps on the sidelines and moves beyond them to the center of the floor. The waltz music begins. Quickly, the expected checklist dance is transformed into an experience to watch.
He has worked to become a top-ranked competitive dancer, mastering not only the waltz but dozens of other dance forms. The constraints seem to vanish, and the box step is invisible. Instead, it is replaced by astonishing lifts and leaps, complex lightning steps and graceful slides — whirling perfection. The couple has gone far beyond just two people dancing. They have become dance embodied.
This power has come by degrees, after the young man decided he wanted to truly dance. His commitment to dance has shaped and changed him; it has molded muscles, limbered limbs and given practiced precision to his every move. Patience and diligence has given him power to make dance his own.
At this level, the check box is a minor afterthought in the wake of the masterful reality of his performance.
All three former students checked the box and said, “Yes, I can dance the waltz." But what an incredible difference in the doing. There is profound depth beyond the minimum requirement to simply put a check in a check box. There is a level of living far beyond what a checklist requires.
Baptism, check; confirmation, check; priesthood, check; temple; check, mission, check; sealing, check.
But what will the outcome be when we are asked to dance?
Randall Bartlett is a business consultant based in the Washington, D.C., area. He and his wife live nestled in the foothills, on the "sunrise side" of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Rappahannock County, Virginia. Contact him at rbartlett@rgballc.com.