One of the greatest joys we have is watching our clients grow. There are times when this growth is really obvious, and other times when the growth takes time. Just like the growth of a child, you don’t realize it is happening until you look back and see how far they have come. I was reminded of one of these growths, just the other day, with one of our clients.
This client, “M” has always been very quiet. She is one of the sweetest souls that you will ever meet. However, it can often be hard to hear her and she often does not speak up for herself. Several weeks ago, we started to realize she would spend the little bit of time before her dance class on Friday mornings to practice in the gym.
This didn’t surprise me about her. It may not seem like it on the outside, but she LOVES to dance. All she can really do is shuffle her feet on the floor. Her body doesn’t allow her to do much more; but she does what she can, with all her heart. Can you imagine the joy she must have, knowing that she can dance? She has been told all her life that she can’t dance, and now she is dancing everywhere she goes. She just can’t stop.
What is even more surprising is the growth we have seen in her personality. Ever since she started dancing she has been speaking up a lot more. The confidence she has been gaining in her dance classes has translated into her interaction with others. She is speaking up when she converses with others. She is telling others what she wants a lot more. She has even been sharing with me more about her life and some of the things she likes doing.
It is growth like this that makes the Creative and Performing Arts program so exciting. Many people think of art classes as “extracurricular,” without realizing that the skills learned in the classes are essential for building healthy lives. The education community is just beginning to understand what artists and art teachers have known for years – the benefits or art classes are worth the time, effort, and finances spent on them. M is just one example of how the arts can provide key therapy tools for individuals with special needs.
For adults with developmental disabilities, each day of their life has been filled with a bunch of “you can’t” statements. They have been told that they can’t do many things. So much so that it has been ingrained in their hearts and minds. For M, dance class has helped to undo this pattern of thinking and helped to change her perspective on other parts of life. Along with many other empowering and informative classes here at Bella Vita Solutions, M has gone from “you can’t” thinking, to “I can.”