[Tango-L] heel or toe - Eryk

[Alexis Cousein]

Chris, UK wrote:
> The placement does not make the sigh. The care makes the sigh... and the 
> placement.

Exactly. Instead of worrying about the connection to the floor, I know
a lot of leaders who should be worrying about the connection with
their partner (and with the music).

If your follower doesn't think you connect properly, then do
something about that. If you lead properly (and thus listen
to your partner after the invitation, move together
for the entire duration of the step, and also negotiate
the end of a step), there's no way to land improperly
if you listen carefully and communicate continuously.
Your instinct will guide you, because...

...let's face it: we've been connecting with floors for most of
our life, one way or another, and most of us can do it in umpteen
different ways depending on what we want to achieve (stomping
when impersonating the formidable T-rex, or trying to get past
the parent's bedroom without making the wooden floor creak).

The same can't be said about connecting to a partner in an embrace, and
that's why many more people have *real* problems with that.

So if your partner tells you she feels as if she's on the other end of a 
bungee cord, listen to her and try to make the movement of
your upper body (which is what connects you to the follower) fluid, and
trust your instinct for the rest. The rest will (pun intended) follow,
and that includes what your feet are going to do. You muscle memory
knows what to do with them.

There's something about discussions about these minutiae
that makes me think there's a bit too much navel staring at times,
and to much worrying about how *we* look rather than how we can
dance in symbiosis with a partner and the music.