Thursday, 18 February, everyone knew something strange is going to happen at this VLV (Vroue Landbou Vereniging). We were told to dress comfortably…and nothing more.
With great expectations and a tad of nerves, the ladies of the VLV arrived for their monthly afternoon meeting. On the tables were a longish rope with bells and beads for each,  decorated individually with flower-beads or feather shaped ones, and so on, still not giving anything away, though.
The meeting was formally opened and important matters were discussed, but everyone was a little distracted by the mystery of the secret event and the bells on the table. After a long wait, it was our Arts and Crafts representative’s turn and she put us out of our misery….The big secret was revealed… we were going to attempt Belly Dancing!

In order to understand the significance and humour in this, I have to explain the context. The VLV is a serious association and comes across as a group of proper ladies, with skills in crafts, arts, baking and homemaking. Every meeting I’ve attended so far was formal and always had a lesson of how to be a better woman, a health tip or two, or a serious social topic. Of all the ladies, we are probably only three that are under 40 and most of the members are at least 50 and up (reaching the age of 80). So Belly Dancing is definitely a first for this group of ladies and even more so, a first for Sutherland!
We were told that Belly Dancing’s origins were relatively unknown, but there were a few theories surrounding its roots. One theory is that it originates from women sharing knowledge on birthing techniques. The benefits of the dance were also discussed and I really enjoyed a tongue-in-cheek comment of it being able to spice up your marriage!

But after the talk it was time for these ladies to show what they were made of!  It was our turn, with the help of the dvd and equipped with all the ‘bells and whistles’, to shake our hips! And this was probably one of the highlights of my experiences in Sutherland so far!

Laughter and the sounds of bells ringing filled the Church Hall and I found myself witnessing a group of ladies finding their ‘graceful’ side, completely caught up in the moment, young and old alike. It was wonderful to see that even prim and proper women could have fun and that in a small town like this, we are still never too old to learn new things. And this reminded me why I joined such a group, never thinking I would really fit in, it was to meet and bond with the women of Sutherland, and that’s exactly what happened at this meeting.

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