In Strangers' Arms

I LOVE your book, Beatriz!!

I get very thirsty in my city for tango. I have traveled to many cities in Europe and North America to both learn and dance tango, and now I may go to B.A. with your book as my first companion. I’ve never been out of love with this dance which planted itself firmly in my heart the first time I saw it, and yet with each morsel of your book, I fall in love all over again and even discover new aspects to treasure.

When I read your book, I feel known. The dancers’ descriptions resonate deeply with me. I celebrate that you found them and made them so beautifully available to readers. Maybe I feel most recognized by the dancers’ desire for dance being as natural as craving water in the morning. In fact, I am moved by the depth of understanding I find among dancers – for the basic needs of food, water, sleep, dance, and ordinary gestures of affection. I find relief sometimes in living simply and deeply – like dance.

I am doing a thesis and I interviewed three dancers – from small Canadian communities – about the effect of tango on their relationships. This has always intrigued me because I would hear quips such as, when sharing a taxi (with a stranger no less!), “I started this dance seven yrs ago with my wife. She quit after three yrs, but I can’t quit because I know it’s healing something.”

Mostly I want to deeply thank you Beatriz Dujovne. You wrote about the dance I know and love. I will definitely use your book as a reference. Imagine my delight coming across what you said about subjectivity! When my supervisor told me I needed to do more literature review, I chose the word ‘intersubjectivity’ and went for it. I spent two weeks studying and writing about that word, true to the tanguera in me, something you so lovingly pointed out!

So, I feel known by your book. You captured so much I want to share with others. Some day they may receive your book as a gift from me! And I feel I know something of you too, in your choice of words, your skill in presenting the universal and the personal, and your loving care for all of it. I look forward to the time we may meet at a milonga!