A friend of mine inquires, “Did you see her new profile picture? Is it not gorgeous?” I responded, “No, I did not.” Another friend’s voice floats, “On Instagram, I saw a cool sunset over Hilton Head. Palmer, did you?” Again, I state, “No, I did not.” Voices begin to swirl around me, “Palmer, did you--have you seen--did you read--have--did--Palmer--are you--I saw this…”

Hello, my name is Palmer Holland; and no, I did not see any of the aforementioned because, I was in a dance studio. Yes, voluntarily. Why, you may ask? Well, I will tell you why: It is my Oz.

1. Obviously, as previously stated, my face is not buried in a screen, as I am sure yours is, 70% of your waking day.

My phone has 31 unopened text messages. 31. Does this bother me? Not in the slightest. I would have to have time to be bothered, by this. The time that I do have, is spent with people, not my iPhone. Spending time with human beings is priceless, my iPhone is not--its cost is $799.99, market value, in fact.

2. I go to a dance studio to lose my mind and find my soul.

Scientists have concluded that smell is the closest sense to memory. I, personally, disagree. The music crescendos, and my mind takes a commercial break, and my soul begins to creep, as my feet slink across the dance floor, revealing the stories that only my soul recognizes.

3. “A twister! A twister!” My personal life seems to be very scarce, and when it does exist, it seems to be turbulent--just like, a twister.

“I can’t. I have dance.” We have all seen this slogan on t-shirts, Facebook posts, and well, anywhere on the Internet. This is my life, or lack thereof; and I am perfectly content with it: A twister.

4. I am a creature of habit.

My alarm rings at 6:00am, as it does every morning. I do not want to slither out of bed, but I do. I drink my coffee. I change my clothing. I arrive at the studio. I begin the music, as I begin my day. The habit is not the studio, nor the music; it is the coffee. Once I drink my coffee, my day is complete. This is a lesson the bewitching Twyla Tharp taught me.

5. I love me.

Dance is where I continue to learn to love the things that I hate about myself. Here is how: I cannot do a leap à la seconde. Well, I can, but not in satisfaction of my standards. So, I will continue to strive for my goals. And everyday, when I witness improvement, as I see my body swirl in a wall of mirrors, like brush strokes on a canvas, I love what I see. I love me because, I am in constant effort of achieving improvement.

Your goals, your dance studio, your twister, may seem like it is somewhere over the rainbow, but I assure you, it is not. It is right in front of your face, waiting to slap you. So, keep following your yellow brick road. Oz is just ahead.