As the music died out the audience erupted with applause. We exited the field and I thought to myself, "who knew that performing at the Metrodome before the Twins game could give you such a rush?" When I first found out that the CSFA was to perform at the Metrodome I became very excited and anxious.

The day finally came and I was feeling relaxed and ready. Back in the changing room we began to change into our outfits and tensions started to build up. We lined up ready to enter the field. I could see that the other dancers were anxious yet paranoid. Many thoughts were racing through my head such as "what if I mess up or get my feet pinched?" My thoughts were interrupted as the loud speaker came on and they began to introduce us. There was no turning back now. We entered the field and my bare feet instantly felt the blades of grass under me. I looked up to see that thousands of eyes were staring back at me. The music began and my body started to flow to the rhythm of the music. Moving at a fast pace I could hear the beating of the bamboo sticks against the grass. We imitated the tikling bird's legendary grace and speed by skillfully maneuvering between large bamboo sticks. Moving in and out of the sticks I never felt the need to glance down at my feet. My passion of dancing the tinikling was seen through my smile.

While leaving the field, my eye caught the sign Asian American Heritage Night. I felt proud to be able to show these people a bit of my Filipino heritage. This was an event never to forget. The CSFA takes great pride, time, determination and concentration in both learning and teaching the dances to their fellow members. It is very important in taking time to pass down their knowledge of Filipino heritage to the next generation.