Soñando con Tango (Copenhagen)

Returning from Soñando Tango Marathon in Amsterdam, once again taking stock of what it is that these trips mean to me, and why, even after so many years, a tango life without them feels impossible.
A month ago, during one of their fantastic lessons at our Frostbite festival in Helsinki, Maja and Marko introduced the concept of a "Zen Moment ". While they were speaking about finding a way to pause meaningfully during a song, I find the concept applicable to other aspects of a milonga, tango event or even life in general. In short, a zen moment is an instant when you become aware of the inexplicable beauty, heartbreaking sadness and undeniable fleetingness of anything you appreciate, be it a song, a journey or a love affair. While making you breathless with melancholy, this realisation also fills you with a deep gratitude for having been able to experience it. And essentially, the only way to really appreciate it is to do nothing. Just stay still and take it in.
For, as Maja so succinctly put it, if you even bat an eyelid, that will not do justice to the beauty of the moment.
This weekend had many such moments for me. Standing in some kind of a crossroads of my personal, professional and tango lives, i needed to pause and listen. So, i listened to the music, i watched the other dancers, and felt strangely detached and involved at the same time. I did dance too, mostly with dear and trusted friends, for my current fragility would have made dancing with strangers too risky. Instead of focusing on maximum dance bliss, i had several meaningful conversations with people whose kindness and compassion was worth a zen moment in itself.
The fact that Pugliese and Troilo really are the music for such contemplation was never under any doubt, but this weekend confirmed it for me. That, together with a couple of Mothers-of-All-Boleos, at the furthest corner and safely out of harm's way, wrapped up the weekend for me.
While it doesn't necessarily get easier with time, there is never a dull moment with tango.

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