Jana Bennett

Returning home after my diagnosis felt like stepping into stillness. Fear moved quietly through my days as my year began to orbit around surgery, recovery, and rehabilitation. This chapter explores surrender, avoidance, creativity as refuge, and the slow turning toward acceptance. It is a reflection on what it means to trust your body, lean on support, and carry both fear and resilience as you cross the threshold into healing.

As families step into a new year, many parents are reconsidering how their children spend time, energy, and focus. Dance is not simply an activity. It is a practice that builds confidence, discipline, emotional resilience, and a lifelong relationship with movement. This article explores why dance continues to matter so deeply in 2026 and how its benefits extend far beyond the studio.

A season of transition, a moment of rupture, and everything that followed. Injury in the dance world is often carried quietly, reshaping identity, routine, confidence, and the way we understand our bodies. This story traces eight counts that changed my year, a fall that awakened old insecurities, and a long stretch of waiting that revealed more resilience than I expected. I share it for recognition, for steadiness, and for anyone navigating injury, recovery, or unexpected change.