Step by Step

"Before my wife Rianne met me, she had just one requirement for her future partner: he had to be able to dance. I couldn't dance at all. So, in preparation for our wedding, we signed up for dance lessons. It helped. Or so I thought. Because now that I think about it, I have never seen the dance footage from our wedding party again... Dancing brings people together, both literally and figuratively.

I felt that very clearly when I opened Dancing (Again) in the Park at Koningsplein in early June. The event was organised by Stichting Smile together with Dutch Dance Days. People of all ages and from every part of Maastricht came together there. Some loved ballroom dancing, others preferred salsa or line dancing.

During the opening, I had the pleasure of surprising William Bartels with a well-deserved civic award. For many years, William has organised dance afternoons for seniors. Before I had even finished my speech, a woman came up to me enthusiastically and told me she had met her partner at one of those dance events. Now that's what I call connection. 

Then it was my turn. Jeffrey from Wat is loos in Mestreech?! asked me, with a camera rolling, whether I would be joining the dancing as well. Before I knew it, I was twirling around the dance floor, expertly guided by Marlou, William's wife. The first step is often the hardest. That is true for all new things in life. But once you take that first step, you rarely regret it."