** This was the first time he approved my dances, but I was too tired to smile. Wish I slept earlier Sat night! **
Krapez said few could go beyond the beginner level; among those few fewer would rise beyond the level of an advanced disciple; most of those very few would never become a master of the art; but most masters have no idea of the true meaning of this master level.
I am not particularly referring to dancing; after all, we get frustrated in doing every kind of things, this invisible barrier often stops us from advancing because we get exhausted during the struggle and finally we give up. The bottleneck stage, however, from my personal experience, is more a necessary stage. If a reason needs to be raised, here is my (truly & humbly) point of view.
It is a fact that a learner takes time to master a skill. A skill that could be learnt is solid and unchanged so that every time when effort is paid to execute, there will be the same result. This is very ideal, however, reality is never ideal. In addition to the learning pace which is different from person to person, there are variables in the process of execution. The basics of a skill may appear to be very superficial to the majority of people, but it is where the magic works. Take language learning as an example, from making random noise to meaningful words to reasonable sentences to sensible argument, one needs to have countless trials and errors in order to testify the real sentiment one means to mean.
At the first stage, words are only words, words are always nouns that represent an object. Later it involves how to logically arrange and change words (grammar) to make it make sense. However, once the range of words is expanded to adjectives and verbs which resemble feelings and observations, a mature enough mind can make use of the words to mean. It is still a matter of words, however, instead of learning the meaning of the words, the user is now choosing meaningful words, or even composing new words, to mean. Learning words is a basic, grammar an advance, but when it comes to the mastering level, word choice according to style/function of writing works the magic. Someone learn faster, but some takes a lifetime (even it is their native language).
Most students struggle at the logical arrangement, and then they bottlenecked when it becomes the only goal in learning a language. Upon completion of primary eduction, a normal learner should of course manage to make correct sentences. If that's the end of language learning, why should we study languages in secondary schools and universities? Good pieces of writing need to be grammatically correct, but how is correct could be varied through time. Since New Culture Movement, we had great writers writing in different styles, their correctness of language usage might not be perfect by the standard of modern standard, however, what matters most is how they presented their thinking in their own and very unique way. A great mind itself will not be great if it itself is not presentable, the hand itself won't be nice if it's not representing sensibly, awesomeness comes when the mind and the hand work together harmoniously.
Same is true for dancing- at first I was quite curious about something. I know I am talented in dancing even at the very beginning (not being arrogant). Then I was fueled by some sort of desire and started to dig into every kind of dancing. I knew even a prodigy needed to be enlightened before becoming a real talent. Once I started my formal training, I picked figures too fast so steps were never a challenge to me; correct usage of the body parts was also easy; as I had good memory routines with different preceding and following figures were not hard to me either; my good memory also allowed me to learn the dances' characters as easy as sponging... I was good even without serious training.
If I was satisfied with being just a good dancer, I would not have been working so hard these years. I didn't want to be good, I wanted to be beautiful, extremely beautiful. Not only a beautiful form, I wanted a beautiful spirit, I wanted a beautiful spirit that would be overwhelmingly infatuate. Because of this desire, I poked into everything to see how could I make myself the most adorable dancer.
However, if a dancer is to just dance many different kinds of dances the dancer can never be better than an advanced beginner, because dances though with their own histories and characters, share the same basis. There is a general truth in all dances, there is one same logic. An advanced disciple can simultaneously dance figures to accommodate the music to make a dance; but a true master does not dance to the music (follow the music) but to innovate a dance for music (you can't alter the music but can syncopate your rhythm).
I completely understand the whole idea- I have been through one major obstacle. The first stage I was eagerly attending as many different things as I could. Then I found the clue. Then I started the experimental stage. Then I was bottlenecked. When I said bottlenecked, I didn't mean to create originals, originals are new breed from from basics, having originals could only be a brilliant advanced disciple, a true master should be expressive. I could follow the music but I couldn't make use of the music. Now I can compose my own dance... not quite successfully sometimes; nevertheless I keep improving. Of course no one can judge what outcome is right or wrong, but as long as I can't invent a dance which can express myself, it is not alright.
Sometimes I think I am thinking too seriously, not many people care about it.
Yeath, every one gets a bottleneck, many of my kids have it, I myself have it too... The world is fair.