2016's painful experience.

SORAN BUSHI dance is a Japanese tradition which spreads throughout as a national school competition. Each year this tradition blooms and the quantity of different schools participation increased rapidly. If dear readers are curious of how it goes,you can just copy this link and watch it before you continue reading. Don't worry, it only last in few minutes>>>>>>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPY5nVX4zc4

As a student in one of those schools, I am included among the 30 dancers in my school. We practiced the dance 5 months straight and i thought forcing my legs to go straight and stretched down on the 'dokkoisho' part completely was a hell of,'what have I put myself into'. But no, there's even worse. Although I succeeded doing it. Our 'senpais'(sisters or respected teachers,people) the one who taught us very well for the dance always believed in us and motivated us the on our last day of practice.

When the time had come, the time we've been training for all along. We were all pumped up to screw up the other competitors. By the way, our school participators most commonly takes off our shoes before starting the dance. It makes us to move easier and lighter. Plus, it suits the tradition. Although...we regretted on not wearing them on that day. Why shouldn't we? devouring the pain from the outside in by the cause of the hottest moment of the day afternoon. Yep, the floor were stone type and the sun was directed above us causing the ground temperature increases into 70 to 80 degrees celsius. Again, to inform, we did NOT wore shoes. I was in the third row in the 4's.

The rules our senpai made for this dance to go prettier is to smile dancing it infront of the audiences including the judges. Apologies, that some of us, no, I mean MOST of us did not. why? Because we're to busy making other expressions such as the pain expression. and cursing. Everyone could not stay put very well especially me. Because I was paranoid if my feet's skin would really sticks on the ground when I move into other formations. But hell the ones on the first rows, deserved to be in it which categorized as the most fiercely and strongest than the other rows. I saw their feet really stays on the ground when it should. I heard they even smiled while looking at the judges. There were also 'kouhais'(junior) in our team. I may be weaker than them. Instead of shouting 'haigh! haigh! haigh!', I heard some us shouted cursing words instead. when the dance began, all we think of is for it to end.

When it FINALLY did, instead of leaving the stage row by row, we only made it from the first row and the next thing we think of were jumping into those puddles of water(didn't matter if it's dirty or not) that were spilled out of the stalls. I was relieving. After that, we went under the tents where the stalls are and literally sat under it and cried. We've never expected that. Its not our fault right? Is this even fair for us? The last of our Soran Bushi dance, the one we practiced for so long, ended up horribly. we will never gonna win this way. They called the paramedics. our senpais cried along but them and a few of our audiences told us it wasn't that bad.Forget the prize, what about our burnt,scalded feet? Our sensei intended to sue the whole JlFest, which is the whole programme including the heartless judges. We could not walk OR stand after the dance. Our senpais and other school members thoughtfully bought ices and water to cool off our feet.

Two of our members had to be sent to the hospital and one of them had a bit of a panic attack and asthma. Although, our heart hurts ten times more by the disappointment and the hope of the judges's reconsideration which will never happen anyways. One of our kouhais in the soran bushi member had no time for healing matters after the horid dance. He had to get up and get ready for the other two performance which are the 'oendon' and japanese choral speaking. After all that his feet numbed and I cried so hard for him as he and his classmates are much more than a bunch kouhais to me. One of his clasmates also got a sprained ankle on the 'oendon' performance by the cause of not very 'skilled' doing it while wearing shoes. But we had to forced them to wear it no matter what.
While our feet were being helped by the paramedics, sensei came up to us and persuaded us to quit crying and accept the reality. She still had faith for us to win. So we stopped crying and rested ourselves. It was a sucky day. Although it taught me to never give up and flames up my heart and desire to really prove our potential and blow the judges minds for next year's competition. In the end, we lost the japanese choral speaking,'oendon', story telling and the best yukata performance but happily we won second place on cosplay costumes.

On our way home in the bus, I sat quietly and hoped myself to go to sleep plus forgetting everything in memory of that day. While some of the others we're talking about the judges we're truthfully being biased on the japanese choral speaking, yukata, etc. Then suddenly, a member of us we're told by sensei that our Soran Bushi dance actually got in 3rd place! The bus went loud with cheer and the disappointments fades away. Who could've known that there were also three other schools danced shoes-less too.Although, deep inside us we knew if we had worn it, we would've be champions.

True story, end.