dancing in the rain essay

A Story Of Studies & Annotation Dancing In The Rain

These lines are taken from the essay “Of Studies” was written by Sir Francis Bacon, who has a great philosopher, statesmen and pioneer of modern scientific thought. His regarded as the Father of English Essay.

While discussing the importance of studying in a person’s life, the author informed us the benefits of reading books and how to choose a good book that is essential.

Studies serve three purposes, “delight”, “ornament” and “ability”. The poet tells us how we may approach each type of book. Every subject has its own value for the reader. So, we must choose wisely before studying any book. Crafty men condemn studies, simple men admire them and wise men will use studies and apply them to life situations. The poet divides books too, into three categories, “tasted”, “swallowed”, and “chewed and digested”. He further states that reading makes a full man. Conference leads to a ready man while writing makes an exact man.

General Relevance : Although the essay looks short, every sentence is enriched with intellectual wisdom, pragmatic approach and practical knowledge, therefore. It is considered to be the most beneficial for the students and youth.

Dancing In The Rain

Annotations:.

1) Robbing children of their childhood is a criminal act, and our society must weed this malaise out from the root.

2) When I look children, I wonder whether they have time to play with friends, to meet interesting people, to explore the world, and to follow their curiosity.

3) Gandhiji said that the greatest lessons in life arc learnt from children, not from learned men.

4) India will be radiant when our children are free to dance in the rain.

INTRODUCTION: These lines are taken from the lesson “DANCING IN THE RAIN” written by Azim Premji. He is an Indian business tycoon and philanthropist. He devotes a lot of time and money to improve the educational system in India.

CONTEXT: The essay deals with the excessive burden – both physical and mental that is imposed on children now-a-days.

EXPLANATION : The essay opens with a disturbing report on child labour. It highlights the pathetic condition of children employed by zari factories. Premji expresses his deep concern and adds that it is inhuman to exploit children. Students have no time to meet their friends, develop relationships, explore the world and pursue their artistic interests. As such they do not grow to their full potential.

Premji says that the greatest lessons in life are learnt from children, but not from learned men. A child daringly tries before giving up. The adults give up even before trying fearing a failure. A child is curious about the world. He gives a call to free our children from the prison like schools. Let us not make them book-worms. Let us see them enjoy the school and home alike and show them the magic of dancing in the rain.

1) What kind of freedom does Azim Premfi recommended to the children of India?

2) According to the writer, in what ways is a child different from adults?

3) What does the writer expect from parents and teachers?

4) What kind of change does the writer visualize in schools and homes?

The lesson “DANCING IN THE RAIN” written by Azim Premji. He is an Indian business tycoon and philanthropist. He devotes a lot of time and money to improve the educational system in India.

The essay deals with the excessive burden – both physical and mental that is imposed on children now-a-days.

The essay opens with a disturbing report on child labour. It highlights the pathetic condition of children employed by zari factories. Premji expresses his deep concern and adds that it is inhuman to exploit children. Students have no time to meet their friends, develop relationships, explore the world and pursue their artistic interests. As such they do not grow to their full potential.

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This is Venu I have 10 years of teaching experience in the Intermediate level and 1-year experience in teaching M.A English entrance exam coaching and I have a Youtube channel English Paradise.

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Dancin’ in the Rain: Narrative Significance of Dance in Film Musicals

In his essay “Dance as a Narrative Agent”, Michael Dunne argues that dancing as a narrative agent sets film musicals apart from traditional narrative forms such as novels or dramatic tragedies. Dancing in film musicals becomes more than mere spectacle as it contributes in various ways to the overall narrative structure of the films. Among the three narrative functions that Dunne proposes in his essay, the third one – “dancing reveals subconscious elements of a character’s personality” – is especially applicable to the film Singin’ in the Rain . In this film, dancing represents the inner conflict within the main character Don Lockwood (played by Gene Kelly). Don starts off as a humble entertainer – singing and dancing on small stages together with his friend Cosmo – but later on becomes a famous silent film star. His dancing numbers in the film, thus, represents a mental break from the façade of the movie star’s glamorous life to return to his root as a musical performer. It is during these dance numbers that Don can stay true to who he is.

The flashback scenes in the beginning of the film present Don’s past as a struggling performer where he dances and sings with his friend Cosmo. However, the voice-over narrating these scenes belongs to the now famous film star Don Lockwood, who completely glamourizes the reality of his humble past. The resulting irony, thus, reveals the tension between Don’s past and present, his inner passion and outer façade. The flashbacks aside, Don’s first dance number is in the scene when he and Kathy get together. The dance, thus, becomes a declaration of their love for each other. At the same time, Kathy – as a stage actress – can be seen as a metaphor for musical performance. Don’s love for her is also a representation of his long buried passion for the art of singing and dancing.

The inner conflict within Don is resolved when he decides to turn the film “The Dueling Cavalier” into a musical “The Dancing Cavalier”. This decision indicates Don finally embracing his root as a musical performer. The relief and happiness that come from this decision are manifested first in the dance number “Good Morning” with Kathy and Cosby and, most significantly, in the iconic performance of “Singin’ in the Rain”. His dancing in this performance is an indication of his psychological liberation from the pressure and restrictions of the role of a movie star, as represented by the rain. Don’s psychological progression over the course of the narrative would not have been complete without this performance as well as his other dance numbers in the film.

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The Art of Dancing in the Rain

Life is short, so learning how to appreciate the small moments amid the chaos is crucial.

photo by Julia Poppa

Sentimental sayings may seem slightly overdone, but applying them in everyday life has never been more important.

Anna Parsons , Staff Writer October 19, 2020

Sometimes we have really difficult weeks. We didn’t pass our math exam. Our friend is fighting with us. Our team didn’t win the big game. Our English essay received a low score. 

This is metaphorical rain. It’s dreary and saddening. It takes all the joy and happiness out of us. All that is left is simply an existing being.  But what if there was a way to turn that rain into something positive?

Well, there is. 

Within that dreadful week, there was a funny conversation at a lunch period. There was a small quiz that got a score of 100%. There was an impressive goal made at practice. 

This is metaphorical dancing. It’s what makes that awful rain turn positive. 

However, oftentimes people don’t focus on the dancing . They focus on the rain . Instead of seeking out the good, they make the generalization that the overall picture is bad. That’s the problem. 

“Dancing in the rain” is a common phrase that people throw about to describe a time in which they turned an awful event into a terrific event by simply making the most of the situation. But t he art of dancing in the rain is a tricky skill to master because it takes great effort. For some reason, people really overlook the good unless it’s the main focus. The minuscule good times are thrown away as if they never happened. 

There is always going to be rain. It’s simply inevitable to remove from life. But if we learn how to truly put emphasis on dancing, then the rain will eventually get less and less difficult to watch. 

Making the most of an unexpected event is not an easy task, but it can be done. A good place to begin is with a simple laugh.

Right now we have a pandemic tormenting our world. Our country is approaching a divisive election that is stirring up more hatred each day. We students share the common stress associated with beginning a new school year. There seems to be an immense amount of rain occurring at this time.

Yet, despite these very real issues, it is extremely important to continue to dance. If we get so caught up in the horrid nature of the tension, we will get lost very quickly. It’s a slippery slope. 

Not every day or week is going to have some monumental, amazing experience occur, so in order to truly engage in putting emphasis on the dancing , the little times in life should be weighed equally as importantly as the monumental experiences. 

Letting the rain dominate every day will deteriorate an individual’s soul. It’s important to stay focused on the dance, for it’s what will keep life worth living. 

Life is also, in general, very short. Why spend it centering on the damaging, negative aspects? Each day may have an overall image it is presenting, but picking apart each minute to find the positives is worth it. 

At times, it may feel that sometimes there’s no hope, hat even with great effort to grasp some sort of happiness, there is no chance at a positive outcome. The rain seems to blur out the dance. 

But the music will turn on soon, and the dancing will pour out. It always does. 

Making the most of an unexpected disappointment is not an easy task, but it can be done. A good place to begin is with a simple laugh. Laughter drains the stress from one’s body and will provide an opportunity for joy to walk through the door. 

The world around us is terrifying, with  constant uncertainty and immense detestation. If we don’t learn how to take thoughtful care of those special, positive moments, our lives will crumple.

Enjoy the little things. Create positive memories. Explore the art of dancing in the rain. 

Anna Parsons is a current senior at NASH. This is her second year writing for The Uproar, but her third year writing for a school newspaper. As a sophomore, Anna wrote for the NAEye. She enjoys expressing herself through her writing. She also enjoys acting in local theatre productions, as well as the NA musicals and plays.

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Singin' in the Rain

By gene kelly , gene kelly, singin' in the rain summary and analysis of part 1: hollywood.

The film opens on the three stars of the film with their backs to the camera, holding umbrellas. As the music swells to a climax, each spins around and begins walking in place and singing the title song. The credits roll. As the credits end, we see the exterior of a movie theater in Los Angeles advertising the “biggest picture of 1927,” called The Royal Rascal. We see young men in newsboy caps hiding in a patch of tall grass watching the film industry celebrities arrive at the premiere. A woman in a fur coat makes announcements about the premiere, and people struggle against one another to get a good look at the proceedings. The camera zooms in on the cover of a film magazine showing the two stars of the film, Lockwood and Lamont. A car pulls up to the premiere carrying a flapper film actress of the time, who emerges theatrically onto the red carpet; her name is Zelda Zanders . She is accompanied by a much older gentleman, with whom she walks down the red carpet accompanied by commentary from the woman in fur. Then Olga Mara , another film star, arrives with her new husband and is met with more oohs and has from the crowd. When another car arrives, the crowd screams at the sight of Cosmo Brown , described by the commentator as film star “Lockwood’s best friend.” The crowd erupts into even bigger adulation as the stars of The Royal Rascal, Don Lockwood and Lina Lamont , arrive.

The camera zooms in on the two stars as the crowds erupt in wild excitement. The commentator talks about the couple’s appeal, which makes them household names around the country. As they walk up to the commentator in the fur, she asks them if they are going to get married soon. Lockwood insists that they are “just good friends.” When the commentator, whose name is Dora , tries to get Lockwood to say something revealing about his relationship with Lina, he says he cannot tell her in front of so many people and the crowd cheers. When Dora tells Lockwood that their story is an inspiration to young people, he takes the microphone and insists that all of his success is due to his friendship with Cosmo Brown, and shakes Cosmo’s hand, explaining that they grew up together. He then says, “Well Dora, I’ve had one motto which I’ve always lived by: Dignity, always dignity.” As the camera zooms in on Lockwood and tender string music plays, he explains that his values were instilled in him by his parents and the finest schools, and he has been performing since then. The scene shifts to show a smokey pool room, where the young Lockwood dances vigorously while a young Cosmo plays the harmonica. A man comes and grabs the young Lockwood and picks him up.

As we hear Lockwood continue to describe his childhood in voiceover to his adoring fans, he tells them that his parents often brought him to the theater, and that he was raised on George Bernard Shaw. In contrast to this description, we see young Lockwood and Cosmo reading a sign for a vaudeville show and sneaking in past the ticket booth unseen. Lockwood then tells the fans that he pursued “rigorous musical training at the Conservatory of Fine Arts,” and we see the young Lockwood playing the violin in a crowded, rowdy bar while Cosmo plays the piano. The scene shifts to an “Amateur Night,” as Cosmo and Lockwood do a shtick-y dance routine in front of an audience, as Lockwood reiterates his motto in voiceover: “Dignity, always dignity.” The scene shifts and we see Lockwood and Cosmo performing in various theaters across America. They sing and dance, Lockwood playing the fiddle and Cosmo playing the piano. As the song continues, they burst out into a song and dance, each carrying a fiddle. They do an elaborate dance. “Audiences everywhere adored us,” Lockwood says in voiceover, as we see the crowd boo-ing him and Cosmo in the flashback of their early career.

Lockwood then describes how he and Cosmo moved to Hollywood and broke into the acting profession. We see Lockwood and Cosmo playing the violin and the piano respectively, creating mood music on set for a melodramatic Western. After a staged fight breaks out, one of the actors playing a cowboy falls on the floor, and the director erupts in a series of criticisms of his performance; he cannot hear them, however, as he has actually been knocked unconscious. As the dramatic director bemoans the fact that his leading man has been rendered unconscious, Lockwood rushes to his side with Cosmo and volunteers to take the actor’s place. The director agrees, and sends Don Lockwood to get dressed for his first movie role. We then see Lockwood dressed as a cowboy doing the scene. When the fight breaks out, he executes the fight choreography perfectly, throwing himself over the bar when a punch is thrown his way. The director is delighted with Lockwood’s performance and praises him. “You got any more chores you want done in this picture?” Lockwood asks him, and the director tells him, “Plenty!” and they shake hands.

We then see Lockwood driving a small plane into a house in a movie, then driving a motorcycle off a cliff, then running into a burning cabin; he became a Hollywood stuntman early in his career. The scene shifts back to Lockwood as he speaks to his adoring fans at the premiere, telling them that Lina Lamont has always been “warm and helpful” as the scene shifts to Lockwood introducing himself to Lina on set. Covered in dirt, he introduces himself as the stuntman and she rolls her eyes coldly at him, saying nothing. A director calls Lockwood over to meet one of the producers, who praises his stunt work and proclaims that he thinks Lockwood has star quality and that he’s going to put him in a movie with Lina. As the producer walks away, Lina smiles at Lockwood and takes his arm as he asks her if she’s available that evening. When she nods that she is, he informs her that he’s busy and walks away, at which point she kicks him in the rear. Their relationship is clearly very poor, but they have kept it up for the sake of their fans ever since. As the scene shifts back into the present, at the film premiere, Lockwood reiterates his motto as the crowd erupts in cheers. The film couple goes into the movie theater.

We see the movie premiere, as the silent film The Royal Rascal plays onscreen; onscreen, Don and Lina are in an embrace. The film contains a scene in which an intruder interrupts the couple and Lockwood’s character must throw him down the stairs. In the audience of the premiere, a woman turns to her friend and says of Lina, “She’s so refined, I think I’ll kill myself.” The film ends and the audience applauds as Lockwood and Lina come out onto the stage and bow. As they come offstage, a group of men congratulate the screen couple, but Lina is furious that Lockwood didn’t let her speak onstage. A producer explains that they wanted Lockwood to do the talking because Lina’s voice is shrill and does not match her physical beauty. As Lina confronts them about why she isn’t allowed to talk, it is clear that she does in fact have a very annoying and unrefined way of speaking. When Cosmo makes fun of Lina, she confronts Lockwood about not advocating for her as her fiancé. He laughs and notes that Lina has been reading the fan magazines and wrongfully believes that they are engaged. “There has never been anything between us,” says Lockwood, even though Lina seems to be under the distinct impression that they are truly in love. An assistant ushers Lina out of the room, as Lockwood laments to Cosmo about his studio-arranged romance with Lina. Cosmo makes a joke and the friends leave.

The scene shifts and we see Cosmo and Lockwood getting out of a car downtown. A small crowd of girls recognizes Lockwood and runs towards him, looking for autographs and tugging at his jacket. When he asks for Cosmo’s help, Cosmo simply makes a joke, so Lockwood runs from his voracious admirers and climbs on top of a moving trolley. After skipping along the roof of the trolley, he jumps down into the passenger seat a passing convertible, startling the woman at the wheel. She threatens to call the police on him, but Lockwood tries to reassure her that he is not dangerous. The woman suddenly recognizes his face, but cannot place him, assuming she must know his face because he is a famous gangster. When she calls to a policeman, he approaches the car and instantly recognizes Don Lockwood, the famous actor. The woman is embarrassed and the policeman leaves them alone. “Thanks for saving my life,” Lockwood says to the woman, and as he starts to get out of the car, she tells him she’s driving to Beverly Hills and can drop him off somewhere. He takes her up on it.

On their drive, the woman tells Lockwood that her name is Kathy Selden . When he tells her that he was running away from his fans and shows her where they ripped his suit, she feels sorry for him. Here, Lockwood seems to speak directly to the camera, and he says, “We movie stars get the glory, I guess we have to take the little heartaches that go with it. People think we lead lives of glory and romance, but we’re really lonely, terribly lonely.” By now, Lockwood has put his arm around Kathy’s shoulder as she drives, and looks at her with desire in his eyes. “Which of my pictures have you seen?” he asks her, but she doesn’t remember which one, and has a somewhat casual and disinterested perspective on movies, which deflates Don. Removing his arm from around her shoulder, he retreats, but Kathy doesn’t let up, continuing to explain why she isn’t impressed much by movies. Of screen stars she says, “They don’t talk, they don’t act, they just make a lot of dumb show!” They arrive at the location at which Don wanted to be dropped off, but Don isn’t finished discussing Kathy’s ambivalence about film.

Lockwood confronts Kathy about the fact that she doesn’t believe him to be a real actor, and when he asks her what she does for a living, she reveals that she herself is a stage actress. Lockwood asks her what play she is in at the moment, and she tells him she is not, but that she is moving to New York soon. Sarcastically, Lockwood mocks her dreams of stage greatness, which Kathy insists is a “dignified” profession. Kathy calls him a “shadow” and he begins to inch towards her, trying to seduce her, but she pushes him away, insisting that he can’t just seduce her because he is a celebrity. “Farewell Ethel Barrymore! I must tear myself from your side,” Lockwood exclaims theatrically, getting out of the car and wishing Kathy goodbye. As he walks away, his already ripped jacket rips even more, and Kathy erupts in laughter. The scene shifts and we see Kathy’s car pulling up to a house. She asks a butler if it is R.F. Simpson’s house—it is—and tells him that she’s “one of the girls from the Coconut Grove.” The butler directs her to park around the back.

The beginning of the film locates the viewer in the glitzy, illusory world of Hollywood. Crowds scream for their favorite stars, actresses who cannot stay married more than a year emerge from limousines in glamorous and theatrical outfits, and everyone always know the perfect thing to say to create the right image. Lockwood makes a point of discussing what a privileged and charmed childhood he had, but quickly we are shown that his upbringing was not exactly what he describes. Instead of a fancy dance school, we see a young Lockwood dancing in a smokey pool room. Following that, every description he makes of how he came to be a star is the opposite of what we as viewers see happening. Instead of a high-brow theatrical education, we see him cutting his teeth on the vaudeville circuit, and instead of adoring audiences, we see boo-ing crowds. The contrast between his description and the flashback shows the viewer that in Hollywood, the good story goes further than the truth. The image of the star is more important than the star’s real biography, and show business is an elaborate game of smoke and mirrors, all illusion and appearances. Lockwood was not trained in rigorous artistic programs, but learned by sheer determination, grit and talent.

The absurdity of show business and Hollywood is typified by the fact that Lockwood gets his first movie role completely by accident. Without any real dramatic training, Lockwood offers to sub in for an actor in a Western who has been rendered unconscious in a fake fight. By simply being in the right place at the right time, Lockwood is able to earn a part in a major motion picture, showing yet again that Hollywood follows a more or less arbitrary logic. Lockwood proves to have a certain “it” factor, an indefinable quality which serves him well as an actor, in spite of having previously been a musician. What’s more, his proficiency as a dancer allows him to complete the physical rigors of the fight sequence to the director’s satisfaction. Singin’ in the Rain shows that Hollywood and show business are built on illusions; a musician on set can step in for an actor and outshine him, a boy with a lot of talent and no training can ascend the fame ladder to stardom. In the movies, this film seems to say, anything is possible—and almost none of it is true.

Part of the way that the film shows the deception of show business is through the image of Lina and Lockwood’s relationship, which appears intimate, but is in fact cold, standoff-ish, and tense, mostly due to Lina’s arrogant behavior and unrefined temperament. When she and Lockwood come offstage after the premiere, she speaks in a loud and annoying speaking voice that contrasts with her refined appearance and physical beauty. When they first meet, she does not give him the time of day, but when a producer informs them that they will be acting alongside one another in a film, she smiles and becomes more friendly. Even though the press has painted her and Lockwood’s relationship as romantic and idealized, we see that they are in fact merely business acquaintances, and that neither is very interested in the other—apart from the fact that they are good for each other’s careers. This element of the plot shows that in show business, appearances matter much more than the truth. This principle is perhaps best encapsulated in the character of Lina, who seems so refined and beautiful, but hides a nasty temperament underneath. Lina is portrayed as a monster, yelling at producers and indignantly questioning why she isn’t allowed to speak when Lockwood is.

Such is the plight of a silent film star whose grating speaking voice does not match her natural physical beauty. This helps us to see that Singin’ in the Rain is addressing specifically the deceptiveness of silent film, in which actors did not speak, but struck certain poses and enacted their characters through gesture and pantomime. Because the films that Lockwood and Lina are starring in at the start are silent films, Lina can hide her jarring voice and appear to be the well-bred characters that she portrays. However, in real life, she cannot hide her less-than-savory qualities. At the beginning of the 20th century, all films were silent. When "talkies" emerged in the late 1920s, they required very kinds of skills and qualities in its actors. Singin’ in the Rain, by including a character like Lina, whose voice does not match her appearance, capitalizes on the comical ironies of a film industry in which sound doesn’t exist, and the ways that the absence of sound could create an even more illusory and deceptive pantheon of stars, ones who did not quite live up to their own hype.

Often satirical and light-hearted, the film exhibits a kind of humorous irreverence and ambivalence about fame. The meeting between Don Lockwood and Kathy only extends this. When Lockwood jumps into her car, Kathy cannot place him, but she knows she recognizes his face from somewhere. Frightened by his intrusion into her vehicle, she assumes she must know him because he is an infamous criminal. Less than a minute ago, we saw a group of rabid fans clawing at Lockwood for an autograph, and now a woman is mistaking him for a criminal. In Singin’ in the Rain, t he line between being beloved and being reviled is a thin one, and the celebrity can easily be mistaken for the convict . Identity is very fluid, and is often deceptive. A great deal of the comedy in the film comes from the contrast between what people perceive and the truth. The double-sidedness of a movie star's life is explained fully in Lockwood’s confession directly to the camera, in which he discusses the pitfalls of fame.

Singin’ in the Rain Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Singin’ in the Rain is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Study Guide for Singin’ in the Rain

Singin' in the Rain study guide contains a biography of Gene Kelly, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About Singin' in the Rain
• Singin' in the Rain Summary
• Character List
• Director's Influence

Essays for Singin’ in the Rain

Singin' in the Rain essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Singin' in the Rain by Gene Kelly.

• Moses Supposes in Style: A Close Reading of an Iconic Scene in Singin' in the Rain

Wikipedia Entries for Singin’ in the Rain

• Introduction

• …the character of a man…

Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass… It’s about learning to dance in the rain.

Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass… it’s about learning to dance in the rain.  – anonymous, more recently attributed to vivian greene.

Why is it that kids seem to get the idea, and adults shy away from doing it?

What does that mean? This quote is about living our lives, not simply waiting around for a good time to start. Too many people wait for the right moment before starting to live their life. To me, that’s just too much wasted time.

The quote starts by saying what life is not . It is not about waiting. It is not about avoiding the storm. And it is most definitely not about waiting for the storm to pass.

Waiting just allows time to pass. What gets done while you wait? Time has gone by, and you have nothing to show for it.

The quote concludes by saying that life is about learning to dance in the rain. It’s about learning to live with, and even enjoy the inevitable storms of life. Sing or dance, enjoy your life, no matter what the weather might be.

We all will face storms in our lives. It is up to us to determine how we will respond to these disruptions. Will we hide inside, waiting for it to pass, or will we continue with our lives, enjoying even the roughest of weather? It is our choice.

Why is not waiting important?    Whether you call it waiting, procrastinating, or just wasting time, what is happening is… nothing. However, time isn’t standing still, is it? It, like your life, is moving forward. If you are just waiting, you are really drifting while you wait. What will that gain for you?

Another problem with waiting is that it can be much harder to learn when you aren’t doing anything. I differentiate between doing nothing and cerebral exercises, such as reading or planning. One can learn and do, even if you aren’t out dancing.

Yet, eventually, we must take action. Sometimes there is no possible way to do anything without getting wet. That is when we must learn to dance in the rain. Or to do whatever we need to get done.Rain or shine, life must go on.

The implication of dancing is that we are enjoying it. If you have to do something, the least you could do is learn how to enjoy doing it. Even if it might be the best time, or perfect weather, we still must do, so let’s have some fun while we’re doing it, right?

Where can I apply this in my life? We all go through rough weather at various points in our lives. Sometimes we sit down, to wait for the storm to pass, and then forget to get back up. Take a moment to consider where in your life you might have paused for a break in the weather, and never gotten back to it.

What about the storms presently in your life? They are the things which this quote is specifically focused. Take a moment to consider what, where, and how severe are your storms at this moment in time.

Are there storms in your family life? Are there storms with or between your friends? Are there storms at work, between co-workers, or even between your company and the customer? What about your social groups, are there any storms there? Weather can come up fast from any direction, can’t it?

But the question remains, what will you do? It’s easier to restart the things placed on hold due to rough weather, once the weather is passed. But what about things which you have put on hold where the weather is still less than great?

Are you going to get back to it? Are you going to learn to dance in the rain? Are you going to learn to enjoy the extra challenge? Will you revel in the chance to see if you are good enough to make it happen despite the weather? At least for some of them?

If you choose to wait for the storm to pass, what are you missing? Are there opportunities slipping by? Are there people to meet, whom you will not be able to meet because you aren’t out there? Yes, there are costs to waiting, just like there are costs associated with dancing in the rain.

How many of those storms are you hiding from? While we all have our reasons or excuses, in the end, we either are doing things in the weather or we are not. That is our choice ; to do or to do not. It is also our choice to enjoy it or to be miserable . Which will you choose, dancing in the rain, or waiting?

From: Twitter,  @Epic_Women confirmed at :  http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/132836-life-isn-t-about-waiting-for-the-storm-to-pass-it-s-about Photo by  Michael Zimmer

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About philosiblog

40 responses to life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass… it’s about learning to dance in the rain..

This quote is from taylor Swift

Thanks for stopping by and for leaving a comment, but I am going to have to disagree with you.

You should check the comments section more thoroughly before commenting, including the comments from both the author of the quote and her lawyer. And she published the work including the quote in 1979, a full decade before Taylor Swift was even born. Sorry.

But, Vivian Greene was born in 1979, so she couldn’t have published the quote in 1979.

Thanks for stopping by, but you appear to have the wrong person. While I don’t have a birth date for her, she attended college in the late 60’s and early 70s, so she could easily have done so. Especially with degrees in Journalism and Communications. ( https://www.linkedin.com/in/vivian-greene-1b37605 )

Totally agree with you , Vivian Greene was born August 1904 quite sometime before Taylor Swift and somehow I can’t imagine her ( Taylor Swift )coming up with a quote so imaginative and profound as this!!

Vivian Greene is the true author of “Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass … it’s about learning to dance in the rain.” I don’t know what you found “curious” about my response. Thanks for the opportunity to clarify this on your blog.

Since Ms. Greene originally published the poem that the quote is taken from in 1979, she has invariably published it under her name. Yet, because of the great popularity of the quote, others have appropriated it without her permission and failed to provide attribution, giving the false impression that it is anonymous. A notable example is a book called Motivatinal Quotes, which sold more than a million copies. Updated copies give her attribution.

My intention has been to set the record straight. Thank you.

Thanks for clarification. Just wanted to make sure I was doing things properly.

Vivian Greene’s proverbial quotes and art have been published globally and syndicated since 1975.

The “life is not waiting for the storm to pass” quote is from a larger work written by Vivian Greene. She received a copyright registration for this work in 1979. The quote is frequently used without her permission, and often without attribution to her.

Thank you for the opportunity to clarify this point.

F. Kubler Intellectual property attorney

Thanks for stopping by and for leaving such a curious comment.

I’m not sure if your comment is stating that I’m in the clear for properly sourcing it, or if something else was intended. Can you please clarify?

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love hurts all time 🙁 why would some1 kiss you with passion walk out when brother shows up then 1 who kissed me asked me something after the kiss but it was a party so loud music could not hear him we been trying dates on of each year but never seem to happen there was always something in the way this year i got a kiss and now its a big blur again sorry bout spelling hope

People can be very difficult to predict. Think about what you want in a lover, then figure out where someone like that would be found.

Talking at parties is always difficult. Find a hallway or a room or step outside so you can hear better.

Stay strong. You deserve the best. They will find you, or you will find them, eventually.

You are most welcome. Please stop by again, it was nice to hear from you.

What does it mean u can’t weather the strom if u don’t dance in the rain?? Me an my girlfriend r having trouble times an I haven’t been tha best how can I change when I’ve been dancing in tha rain

Thanks for stopping by, and for leaving your comment. Sorry it took so long to get back to you, life has been busy for me.

The general idea behind this quote is that while you can wait for the storm to pass, you are losing that time, and missing the opportunity to try something new, like find a way to make what some consider an unpleasant event into something you can enjoy.

As for relation troubles, you can either sit back and hope things get better (waiting for the storm to pass), or you can work with her to try to make things better (dancing in the rain).

I hope that makes a little more sense.

My heart is aching, and the memory of good days just pass by my eyes like a wide blue strip of mighty sky and some fluffy white clouds in the background. The sun is as golden as always and shining down at us and the love in our hearts is breathtaking. But my heart is aching and my eyes are raining. I decide to start a dance in the rainy day of my eyes, it is possible yes but my heart stil aching..

That was very pretty. Thanks for sharing it.

Thanks for reading it you’re welcome 🙂

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philosblog inspired me so much thank you for the amazing words it taught me life is an adventure worthwhile in itself i will embrace every moment now!

You are very welcome. I’m glad you found the post to be of some use. Feel free to look around at some of the other posts, as I have over 1100 of them now. 8)

Thanks for stopping by, and for leaving such a kind comment.

It’s a beautiful saying. I’ve had so much tragedy in my life that I find myself frozen and barely breathing waiting for the trauma to pass before I live. I am now learning to dance in the rain at the same time my soul aches. That folks is a dance in the right direction!!

Thank you for sharing that. Stay strong!

I will device this strong storm I’m under because of a misunderstanding my mouth got me in this storm. Sometime is best to keep quiet until you know for sure its true.I like your kind words.happy holidays hun.

Thanks for stopping by and for your kind words.

Yes, sometimes the storm is of our own creation. That can be most unpleasant. It appears you have learned something from your experience. Anytime I learn something from an experience, I consider it not a mistake, but a success. So long as I don’t do the exact same thing again.

I’m so glad that I found this blog! This is the very first blog I really enjoyed. These words made me realize to live my life täysillä as we say here in Finland. I will keep on reading your texts step by step because they give me so much to think about. Thank you!

Thanks for the kind words. I’m glad you found the post of some use. There are plenty of posts here, over a thousand now, so feel free to dig around. 8)

I believe we all can improve, and should improve. And that improving is like a moving target. As you get better, you find better ways to improve yourself.

That my creations are helpful is my greatest reward. Blessings

Thanks for stopping by. Glad to hear from you, and I’m sure Suvi is as well.

how to responds to the wet?

Exactly. You don’t always get dry, sunny days. Sometimes you have to be able to do what you have to do in the wet.

Thanks for stopping by, and for leaving a comment.

What is to live our lives?

I’m not sure I understand the question. Please rephrase or extend.

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Reblogged this on Ammie's Space and commented: haay..

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Learn to Dance in the Rain

Andrew Jenkins Category: Self-Awareness

What do you do when bad things happen? Neuroscience has some remarkably useful tips. DUCK! Here comes another of life’s curveballs

In leadership, unexpected curveballs can strike out of the blue at any time. Often, we have no control as to what, where, when or why these happen.

But here’s the rub - you are in control of how you choose to deal with them.

I don’t know about you but, when bad things come along, I just want them to go away. That reminded me of this famous quote:

“Life isn’t about sheltering from the storm…It’s about learning to dance in the rain.”

But, what does it mean to dance in the rain?

To dance in the rain is a metaphor. It means: “that a person has learned not to allow circumstances deter them reaching their full potential. They don’t wait for bad things in their life to go away. Instead, they have a positive attitude and take challenges head on and enjoy the journey.” (Christine Smith, Family and Consumer Education at Wayne County, North Carolina 2013).

I believe there are some useful lessons here, to apply to leadership.

Hmm - fate, Or destiny? Choices, choices!

I have observed that often people seem to spend their lives reacting to life’s circumstances. Driven by fear or out of habit, they seem conditioned on going along a path set by fate (events outside their control).

But every once in a while a person just like you comes along and knocks down all the obstacles that fate puts in their way.

These are the people that realise free will is a gift. But, here’s the thing - you won’t know how to use it until you unwrap it.

Therefore, one day you won’t have to follow fate because you put the effort in and tested yourself. You deserved the right to reach for your destiny instead. It isn’t an easy road, but one less travelled!

Your history does not have to be your destiny” adapted from Alan Cohen

But, when something rains on your parade, dealing with it still takes courage, character, attitude and conviction. These are essential leadership qualities. What’s more, neuroscience says you can train your brain to develop these. We will explore this next.

Uh oh! - we found this monkey in your brain

Sometimes in our lives, when it rains, it pours. That can trigger one or more limiting beliefs. These are basic survival neuro-pathways that your brain can build. When a limiting belief is in play, it fires off all sorts of negative mind chatter that fills up your head with bad thoughts. For instance:

Typical, why does this always happen to me?

Why am I never worthy (or good, pretty, clever) enough?

I always get things wrong; I’m a failure, why do I never learn?

Professor Loretta Breuning, Ph.D. neuroscience expert, author and founder of the Inner Mammal Institute picks up this theme. She says, ‘when your brain senses threat it releases a spike of cortisol - the stress hormone. Cortisol is nature’s emergency alert system. That spurt arouses your survival and protection reactions to avoid a threat. Cortisol creates a bad feeling and that also sparks your limiting beliefs to get your attention.’

It is the wiring of the downstairs part of your brain that warns you of external signals of danger or anything like what has hurt you before. Loretta goes on to say, ‘if you always treat that cortisol blast as if it’s a real threat, you end up with more being triggered’ – and your negative mind chatter hijacks your brain.

So, a practical way to deal with difficult circumstances is to recognise a bad feeling as it happens. That feeling is an old neural pathway that has set off the flow of cortisol. Loretta believes the trick is that when you sense it, give your body time to dispel the cortisol release. Back to my metaphor, to dance in the rain! It is useful to find a distraction to interrupt any limiting beliefs and exit those old patterns.

You get to decide and choose in every moment. (Loretta Breuning)

Train your brain for a change - happy days

Leaders know that they are at their best when they engage their upstairs (thinking) brain. Not only is your upstairs brain infinitely capable, did you know that it also has access to your happy chemicals such as dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin and endorphin?

Loretta says that your upstairs brain looks for facts that make you feel good. When you engage your happy chemicals, they give you a boost. Moreover, they override the feel bad factor of cortisol. Every rain cloud has a silver lining!

Loretta recommends that you can:

Take a step toward a goal, whether a huge goal or tiny goal. This releases dopamine, the reward chemical because your brain anticipates reward instead of anticipating pain.

Stimulate oxytocin – the hug chemical too, with a little faith, take a small risk or a step toward trust (a little bit of real trust is much better than lots of fake trust).

Prompt serotonin by comparing yourself favourably with others instead of wondering what they might say and think about you.

Trigger endorphin with a belly laugh - a real laugh. So, make time for humour and things you find funny. Endorphin is released to counter pain too. So, it gives us a feeling of joy when we work hard to overcome an obstacle.

See all these in action and check out this inspired video clip of a child’s simple, but profound words on a rainy day. At the same time, it teaches us not to sweat the small stuff:

Oi, you! Yes, you. Look in the mirror - that’s who’s in your way

Here are ten useful tips for leaders. They help you engage the upstairs part of your brain along with your happy chemicals. They also teach you not to take yourself so seriously at work and in life:

1. Have a go at taking the occasional risk. Like the mother in the film, challenge your embarrassment. Nobody will care if you get a bit ‘red-faced’ once in a while

2. Set yourself a goal to take a few chances. For example, take time out to build your team, or present your ideas and passions to wider audiences

3. Drop the pretense that you are The Big Cheese. Eat a bit of humble pie for a change and start to accept other peoples’ ideas too. You might surprise yourself

4. To make a mistake is okay. But your fixed mindset will tell you that you aren’t capable if you fail. So tell yourself that to learn from failure leads to better success

5. It’s okay to lose once in a while - things don’t always work out. The trick is to learn from the disappointment

6. Give yourself a slap on the back whenever you stop yourself being harsh and critical. Learn to feel good about others and yourself instead

7. The ultimate source of happiness is a positive mindset. So, see the funny side of your oversights and flaws

8. Be generous, kind and above all forgive others (how are you doing with that one?). Have gratitude too

9. Nothing is permanent

10. Smile, if you want a smile back.

So, work on these tips, get out of your own way and every now and again dance in the rain. Let go of the little things and don’t let problems rain on your parade!

Read more from Andrew Jenkins .

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Andrew Jenkins Founder MD at PDx

My name is Andrew Jenkins, and I am proud to be MD of PDx Consulting Ltd - PDx is dedicated to developing you as leaders to evolve into businesses that have a core purpose beyond just making money, that make a difference to peoples’​ lives making the world better.

I care about facilitating your teams and leadership skills, so your people can do their very best work.

I love team building with ambitious leaders to create great workplaces. If you’re willing to invest in new skills and step up to new challenges, then I’m the man.

I deliver tailor-made programmes fitted to your unique circumstances, your people, your needs and problems. I specialise in blending both ‘systems’ and ‘emotional intelligence’​ to bring you useful models, simple to use tools and practical processes to bring it all to life. Take-away outputs are directly usable in your workplace.

I create structures that help you to learn directly and build your skills in emotional intelligence, collaboration and cohesion, trust and openness.

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How to dance in the rain

Sharing inspiring stories: love that transcends all adversity, even alzheimer’s..

Posted January 14, 2011

New Year’s Greetings!

We need to share our inspiring stories. This one, recounted by a nurse, happened at a busy clinic at 8:30 one morning. An elderly gentleman in his 80’s arrived to have stitches removed from his hand and said he was in hurry because he had another appointment at 9 o’clock.

While attending to the various steps in any medical visit, the nurse noticed that he kept looking at his watch. When she asked him if had another doctor’s appointment, he answered, “No, but I need to go to the nursing home to eat breakfast with my wife.”

When the nurse inquired about her health, the gentleman replied that she had Alzheimer’s, and he always went over first thing every morning to be with her. She asked if his wife would be upset if he was a bit late. “No, she probably wouldn’t be, because she hasn’t recognized me for several years.”

Surprised, the nurse asked, “And you still go every morning even though she doesn’t know who you are?”

He smiled, patted the nurse’s hand, and replied, ”She doesn’t know me, but I still know who she is.”

The nurse, holding back tears as he left, thought to herself, ‘That is the kind of love I want in my life.’

This kind of love accepts everything that life brings, including the ravages of dementia or any severely debilitating illness. It’s far beyond ordinary concepts about what love is. As the saying goes: the happiest people don’t necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the best of everything they have. Or to put it another way, ‘life isn’t about how to survive the storm, but how to dance in the rain.’

Go to my website!

Olivia Hoblitzelle is the author of Aging With Wisdom: Reflections, Stories & Teachings and Ten Thousand Joys & Ten Thousand Sorrows: A Couple’s Journey Through Alzheimer’s .

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In Photos: 12 Hours Inside the Harvard Yard Occupation

Around 200 protestors gathered in the rain for an emergency rally in front of University Hall. Harvard University Police officers and vehicles also established their presence in the area. According to an HUPD officer stationed on the scene, they were instructed to keep students safe and allow protests to proceed unless they became violent or destructive.

The group grew to roughly 500 people, with organizers announcing that it is “time to march.” As protesters marched around Harvard Yard, organizers ran out from various freshman dorms with tent equipment to set up an encampment in Harvard Yard in front of the John Harvard statue.

Students and volunteers raced to set up an encampment in front of University Hall in the Yard, pitching tents amid backpacks and other supplies.

As encampment members set up their tents, protesters lined up outside the string-and-posts barrier in a show of solidarity — their signs called for Harvard’s divestment from Israel and a ceasefire in Gaza.

Franklin D. and Florence Rosenblatt Professor of the Arts Vijay Iyer spoke at the encampment, reading a statement from Harvard Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine. In his speech, Iyer called for the reinstatement of the PSC.

A counter-protester wrapped in an Israeli flag recorded a safety marshall stationed near the encampment.

Protesters pitched a dozen camping tents and a central tent for food, an inflatable watermelon — a symbol of Palestinian solidarity — and laid out handmade signs calling for divestment.

Student speakers and organizers addressed encampment protesters and onlookers throughout the early afternoon.

Protesters wrapped in keffiyehs held signs in Arabic around the encampment and John Harvard statue.

Protesters teamed up in groups, continuing to assemble tents through the afternoon. Organizers also stocked a central tent with food — from chips, cookies, and applesauce to produce and bread — in preparation for their potentially dayslong stay.

Protesters participated in the dabke, a Levantine folk dance which involves holding hands as one circles the encampment.

Protesters fixed pro-Palestine signs and banners to tents around the encampment, including slogans reading “Harvard Out of Occupied Palestine” and “Free Palestine!”

History professor Erez Manela, left, showed his Harvard ID to campus security staff before entering a regularly scheduled faculty meeting in University Hall.

A cameraman from 7 News and a woman beside him stood outside Harvard Yard’s gates attempting to capture the action on the inside. Harvard Yard has been shut down to all but Harvard ID holders all week.

Protesters formed a barrier with keffiyehs around one of the tents as Muslim participants engaged in Asr, or afternoon prayer.

J. Kojo Acheampong ’26, who has helped lead several pro-Palestine protests in the months since Oct. 7, sat at the base of the John Harvard statue.

In the late afternoon, protesters assembled a second wave of eight tents, expanding the encampment deeper into Harvard Yard and towards Johnston Gate. As of Wednesday evening, the encampment consisted of more than 30 tents.

Harvard University police opened the doors to Massachusetts Hall, which houses the office of the Harvard president, to allow several people to exit. Police kept watch at the front door of Massachusetts Hall throughout the afternoon and night.

Protest organizers hosted a teach-in, during which organizers spoke to students about the history of student protest, including the singing of protest songs. The teach-in was cut short due to sporadic rain showers over the next few hours.

Around sunset, students lined up and got dinner from the center tent in the encampment, eating food prepared by organizers, pizza donated earlier in the day, and leftover seder food.

Protesters in the encampment prepared for potential rain by placing tarps and rain covers over the tents. Students also fixed additional posters, flags, and signs to the outside of several tents.

Just before the College’s “quiet hours” began at 11 p.m., students went into the tents to sleep as others continued to transport and deliver supplies for the night.

Just past midnight, nearly all encampment protesters settled into tents across Harvard Yard, wrapping up nighttime conversations and chatter. Small groups of protesters circled the encampment on watch as Harvard University Police Department vehicles stood by.

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MOSCOW WIDENS NEW POLICY LINE; Essay, Scored During Rule of Khrushchev, Praised for View of Hard Rural Life

MOSCOW, Dec. 26—A growing reversal of the policies of former Premier Nikita S. Khrushchev, especially in agriculture, was‐extended today to the field of literary criticism.

The literary‐union newspaper Literaturnaya Gazeta published a laudatory review of Yefim Dorosh's essay “Half Rain, Half Sunshine,” which gives what is widely regarded as a realistic depiction of the countryside of central European Russia.

The essay, published last summer in the liberal literary monthly Novy Mir, was violently attacked in the Soviet press just before Mr. Khrushchev's overthrow in October as misrepresenting life in rural areas.

One critique, by L. Lebedev, a collective farm chairman from the Galich area northeast of Moscow, appeared in Selskaya Zhizn (Rural Life), the farm newspaper of the Communist party's Central Committee over whose content Mr. Khrushchev had direct control.

Mr. Lebedev charged Mr. Dorosh with conveying a picture of “prerevolutionary dreariness, despondency, stagnation, and complete hopelessness drifting from every page.”

The farm chairman accused the author of concentrating attention “on an old monastery, an ancient lake, an abandoned grave of some count instead of writing, say, about the new widescreen moviehouse.”

Mr. Lebedev said Mr. Dorosh had misrepresented the cultural level of farm youth and the rural intelligentsia by depicting them as “primitive, uneducated people without interest in literature or the arts.”

Mr. Dorosh had written that the residents of his fictitious country town of Raigorod “read little, went, to be sure, to the movies, but had not been in the regional museum, in the picture gallery, in the theater or at the philharmonic concert.”

Today's review in Literaturnaya Gazeta by Vladimir Voronov, a critic, contended that Mr. Dorosh had performed a useful service by drawing attention to problems that continued to bedevil Soviet agriculture and life in the countryside.

The essay, published while Mr. Khrushchev was still in power, questioned the effectiveness of some reforms inspired by the former Premier and criticized the continuing close supervision of farm production and the imposition of output plans from above.

In an evident allusion to Mr. Khrushchev's style of running Soviet agriculture, Mr. Voronov wrote:

“Dorosh regards the struggle for a growth of the rural economy not as a short‐lived, noisy campaign but as a long, complicated haul.”

Mr. Voronov assailed the farm chairman for having judged the essay simply on the basis that his own area was more prosperous than the one pictured in “Half Rain, Half Sunshine.”

The reviewer said it was not literary criticism to say:

“We live better” and to tell “about a milkmaid who had obtained 800 quarts of milk more from a cow than in the previous year.”

The controversial essay is part of a series of “rural diaries” that Mr. Dorosh, a resident of Moscow, has been writing since 1956 on the basis of periodic visits to an unidentified small town and the surrounding countryside in central Russia.