A Workshop 'Down Under'

One of the great things about being a member of the Society is that you can do Tai Chi in so many wonderful parts of the world. Here, Sue Denny, a member from Suffolk, reports on her recent visit to Australia.

As my trip to Australia to visit family was fast approaching, I received an email advising that there was to be an additional two-day workshop taking place on the last weekend of my holiday. Tony Kwong was coming over from Canada to lead us. I could not believe how excited I felt at this news, what an opportunity to learn more from another leading instructor.

I did have a twinge of doubt as to whether I would prefer to spend my last weekend with my family but Tai Chi won out on that score. And I sent off my ‘Rego Form’ securing my place ensuring that I would take advantage of the 20% discount for early booking – I am always one for a discount if available!

The workshop was in Canberra and I traveled from Sydney by coach – a mere 3 hour journey, where I was met by my hosts with whom I was billeted. Such friendly, kind welcoming people with whom I immediately felt comfortable.

A total of 49 people attended the workshop, from Canberra, Sydney, Adelaide, Melbourne, Brisbane, and of course me from the UK. A few of the people I knew from previous workshops in Canberra but it is always a pleasure for me to be able to walk into a group of ‘strangers’, be accepted and feel as if I have known them all my life.

Of course a Tai Chi workshop would not be complete without food and members from Canberra provided us with a magnificent spread for morning and afternoon tea and the catering team came up trumps with a delicious hot lunch on both days. Saturday night was spent socializing over a meal in a local hotel.

Tony’s teaching was amazing and to watch him do a set (with TV cameras present) a real joy. Continuing Instructors in Training were taken to one side at one stage and given practice while the rest of us were able to watch and learn. To see them doing moves with such unity made it all look effortless and brought home to me the importance of keeping the timing and thus helping each other.

A wonderful workshop – but aren’t they all wonderful? I came away feeling relaxed, very open and with a sense of having been amongst my extended family. Thank you guys for all your organization and yes I will be back for more!

Mike Lavocah reports from one of the Society's newer locations:

Less than 18 months after starting our first class in Norwich, the members – on their own initiative! - gave their first public demonstration. The occasion was the Mousehold Fun Day, a fete celebrating Mousehold Heath, a large area of public land on the edge of the city.



The demonstration went off really well - you can see the smiling faces! We were first on, so not that many people saw the demo, but we were still able to chat to the public and give out a few leaflets. The demo came about on the initiative of one of our members, who was also helping to organise the Fun Day. Slowly but surely, we seem to be establishing ourselves well here in Norwich.

A Grand Day Out

It's not all workshops and good food....! The Society has many other activities, one of which is an important way in which we fulfil our aims and objectives - the public demonstrations that local members put on throughout the year. Here, Jos Halls sends us news of a typical such event:

On Sunday 19th July members of the Suffolk Branch were honoured to be invited to open the Town and Bridge Project ‘Healthy Lifestyle Have a Go’ event in Ipswich. This event was held at the newly opened Suffolk University Campus site, by the town’s rejuvenated waterfront. The day started with about 60 members demonstrating a double Tai Chi set outside the beautiful showcase building.

The wind doth blow...........

.......and we shall do Tai Chi!

Due to the less than ideal weather conditions – now let’s face it what would expect in England in the middle of summer? – we were not joined outside by many observers, who instead chose to observe us from the warmth and shelter inside the building (especially as it is fully glass fronted). To explain; despite the sun shining overhead there was a roaring gale, which was accelerated around the gentle curves of the building from the river. So the biggest challenge was keeping one’s balance and feet firmly on the ground! By not being too ambitious with the kicks and working together everyone managed to stay upright, bearing the brunt of the breeze face on as we turned into every single-whip.

Part of the brief from the organisers to the various groups concerned was to encourage visitors to ‘Have a Go’, so throughout the day a relay of instructors and members held interactive sessions at our indoor display stand. We were certainly kept busy all day with many people coming to join in. This was the third of a series of demonstrations held by the branch in recent weeks so we are hopeful that we will stimulate good interest locally - as the branch is running three 6 week taster courses over the summer break in readiness for the autumn term.

Taking part in demonstrations and promoting the Society is another facet of what we do. So we were very pleased to welcome some relatively new members who came out to join in for at least part of the day. Learning the set for the first time around in the relative safety of your local class is one thing, but for a few having only just completed the set for the first time only a few weeks ago meant taking an even ‘bigger step’, so well done. Also thank you to the numerous members who took part in a very enjoyable day.

members demonstrating how the Set can be adapted for sitting

The Branch has been fortunate over the last few years in establishing some good links with other local community groups including the local Borough Council. Such contacts are proving to be invaluable, as it gives us many more opportunities to allow others to experience the health benefits of our Tai Chi. We all had a lot of fun, shared many laughs and went home feeling rejuvenated but somewhat windswept.

Where instructors come from.....

It's been a busy summer so far, lots to catch up on. First off, Edyta and Crispin Barker report on the instructor training workshop they led recently at our Western Region Centre in Newport.

The first Assistants Workshop to be held at the Western Region Centre this year was a great success in more ways than one. It was a truly regional event as far as the organising was concerned. As well as locals, members travelled from Kent, Sussex, and London to help with the organisation and cooking, and others came from as far afield as Ireland and Scotland to take part.

Getting down to work for some of the participants

Discussions around what it means to be an instructor for the Society and the importance of our Aims and Objectives were interspersed with the foundation exercises and practising the set throughout the weekend. The enthusiasm of the 14 participants made up for the small size of the group. Stories about Master Moy and his teachings were mixed in with dan-yus and snakes using the wall bars to allow the group a chance to balance the movement of the spine throughout the exercise. The group had lots of opportunities to study the differences between the Continuing and Beginning form. Talks and discussions about the other Taoist Arts were also included.

And of course, there is always the food - an essential part of any workshop

Our thanks goes to all those who helped to make it such an enjoyable weekend, but particularly to Sandra, Mark and Janice for their commitment in travelling up to help run the event.

The Big Breakfast

Many readers of the weblog will have come to realise that eating is a very important part of what we do in the Society. On 21 June a small team comprising Steve Price, Sam Masters, Graham Oakley, Nick Bustin, Alan Roebuck and Carol Danenbergs set about the task of cooking a hearty “Orangeville Breakfast” for approximately 60 people.

It's all about preparation......

The 'secret' recipe is poured.

The idea for the breakfast originated from a conversation with Sean Dennision during his visit to GB earlier this year. It was during this conversation that Sean discovered that Nick did very little cooking at home, but had helped to prepare breakfast at a recent workshop he had attended in Orangeville. Sean thought it would be an ideal opportunity for Nick, Steve and a few others to learn how to organise and cook a simple meal for a group of people and this is how the idea of the “Orangeville Breakfast” came about.

The cookings underway.....

How do you like your sausages?

Early on the Sunday morning the ovens were turned on and trays of sausages and bacon started to cook. Eggs were beaten either for scrambling or as a key ingredient in “Mr Steve’s Fluffy Pancakes”. After a few hairy moments and Nick discovering the “panic” move, we managed to get food out on to the tables, with folk tucking into a hearty breakfast.

tucking in


a hearty breakfast indeed!

The morning proved to be a great learning experience on how to work together and organise the kitchen. Everyone enjoyed themselves and we managed to raise some additional funds for the National Building Fund which was an added bonus, and 56 people stayed on to participate in an Intensive.

I knew that extra pair of hands would come in useful!

We'll be doing it again, so watch out for the posters.

Sun and Fun at the AGM

Last weekend saw over 200 members gather for an Instructors Workshop and the Society's AGM at our European Centre at Colchester. The weather is traditionally hot and sunny and for our AGM and that held true to form, and the proceedings did get quite warm with that many participants. Luckily the hall is well aired and the new marquee helped by providing additional space to eat and rest, sheltered from the hot sun. Sadly there are no photos of the marquee being put up, but suffice to say that a good many burly (and not-so-burly) volunteers were on hand to start the job Friday night and finish it Saturday morning before the start of the workshop.

Members making use of the new marquee

The workshop was packed but as usual everyone managed to get along very well, and many people commented on the happy, positive and friendly atmosphere during the weekend. Indeed, several participants leaving on Sunday afternoon said that it had been something 'very special'. Certainly it was the best attended AGM for many years, if not ever! Proceedings took a little under two hours, and members kept up a good level of attention listening to the summaries of reports presented, not least of which was the report from the Society's Auditor's on the financial state of the organisation - which is very sound.

Food is always an important part of any workshop...

The National Committee met on Saturday evening to discuss the Society's continuing search for clubhouses, something that was close to Master Moy's heart and consequently forms a focus for much of our fund raising and energy. Having a home of our own is certainly something that is greatly appreciated by all who visit the Centre, or any other of our homes, and this contributes hugely to the success of such events.

...and then there is always lots of hard work and practice!

Back For More.....

Following on from the spectacular Grand Opening of our refurbished regional centre in Newport last year, many of us returned recently to celebrate its first anniversary. An international three day workshop was organised to mark the event, and this was crowned on the Saturday night by a formal Chinese banquet.

Plenty of dan yus - warming up? you bet!

The workshop was led by Frazer Smith from Canada, and two further guests from that branch of the Society, Andrew Hung (a director of the International Society) and Julie Poulin, flew in to take charge in the kitchen. We were also joined by another international director, Carmen Capilla from Spain, who is becoming a familiar visitor to our shores. Other branches represented included Denmark, Italy, Czech Republic, Spain and Costa Rica.

altogether now...Single Whip!

Frazer did a great job leading the 81 participants through 3 days of the workshop. The theme throughout was about working together, helping each other, and relaxing (a theme Frazer continued from his workshop in Ireland the week before). The hard work was interspersed by Frazer with insights into the process of dual cultivation, sharing his experience and knowledge in an encouraging and illuminating fashion. At one point, to illustrate some of the cultural background to what we do, he created a makeshift Taoist shrine using fruit, tables and images from the Centre, which many found fascinating, and around 40 members joined in a chanting session on the last day.

Andrew and Julie working in the kitchen

On the Saturday evening the culmination of many hours, days and weeks of planning was reached when guests and members sat down to a lavish Chinese Banquet. Andrew cooked with great spontaneity that belied the careful planning that went into cooking a nine course banquet for 120 people. Much care had been taken to ensure that everything was presented properly on the night, and the way that people worked together before, during and after the banquet demonstrated how these events can bring us closer together and strengthen the Society. It gave newer (as well as longer-serving) members a chance to see the Society from a wider perspective.

The Lion inspects the guests - yes, they'll do nicely!

The banquet was kicked off in spectacular fashion with a traditional Chinese Lion dance. This colourful and dynamic opening was a lively reminder of how well this started off the original celebrations last year. The Guest of Honour was Councillor Mark Whitcutt, Deputy Mayor of Newport, who gave a speech and stayed until the very end. As well as speeches, several members gave demonstrations of the various arts taught and practiced within the Society, to entertain the diners. A local Harpist was a wonderful addition to the event and showed how something not directly related to the Taoist arts or the TTCS can still be integrated with good effect into the evening. She provided a balance of culture to the evening.

demos - accompanied by Crispin's commentary

Now where's that food?

Despite such a long day of hard work (including all the clearing up) around 40 people were up practising till 1am when Andrew was teaching (and rumour has it some did not see their bed until 3.30am). This was an impressive demonstration of how keen people were to learn, and how hard they were prepared to work to take advantage of the opportunity to learn from an experienced international instructor who trained with Master Moy for many years.

OK, smile and say 'Chi'

Our sincere thanks to Andrew, Julie and Frazer for visiting and helping us with what turned out to be a memorable and hugely enjoyable celebration.