The Dance

I played bridge three times this week with three different partners. As I think about each individual game and the experience as a whole, it strikes me that playing bridge is similar in several ways to ballroom dancing.

First, the partnership: You have to be comfortable with your partner. No one dances their best when they are intimidated, nervous, anxious, or even feeling superior. You have to adjust and smooth over the edges so you fit together and have fun.

Next, the skill level: When I dance with an accomplished dancer, I can follow his moves pretty well. He may have to slow down a fast spin so I don't fall over and eliminate some tricky steps so I don't trip, but with the right hand pressure on my back and a few whispered directions, things go relatively smoothly. When I dance, or play bridge, with someone at my own skill level we can glide through the basic moves but are still trying out and working our way through the trickier ones. It doesn't go as smoothly.

Also, the learning curve: Adding new, fancy steps interupts the flow of the dance. The new moves can be difficult to incorporate, especially when new music is played. Computer dealt hands--even though they are supposedly random--can throw a monkey wrench into any routine.

Of course, the stumbles: Sometimes a misstep can be covered up and go unnoticed except by an expert; sometimes the results are disasterous. In either case, the solution is analysis and practice. Practice. Practice. Practice.

Finally, the music: Finding and feeling the rhythm is at the heart of dancing and, yes, of playing bridge. When the partnership is inside the music, feeling and responding to each other's moves, everything goes right. When the partnership struggles to find that beat, they are in trouble.

Not a perfect metaphor, but there you have it.