Encircled in Chi (November 2006)

Minnesota hosted the 21st annual T’ai Chi Chih Teachers’ Conference on July 27-30th, 2006. We were excited to host and welcome 145 teachers to the conference. Our intention was to honor each individual teacher while celebrating the circle of connection to each other and the universal energy. We hoped to nurture each attendee and their practice of TCC during the weekend. Our theme, Encircled in Chi, expressed those intentions.

During the conference, we included practice sessions, teaching sessions, discussion, community updates and some ceremony. The Minnesota group wanted to honor our past, examine our present and envision the future of our T’ai Chi Chih community. We started with an Honor ceremony to honor all who had contributed to TCC. And then the break out sessions were designed for the teachers to discuss how to nurture their practice and how to nurture the future of TCC. The teaching sessions were led by Sr. Antonia Cooper, Pam Towne and Sandy McAlister. Each session explored one area of movement such as correct yinning and yanging–from the evaluations, this proved to be a helpful way for the teachers to enhance their learning about TCC. The community updates covered a lot of information. KG handed out press release information and explained how to use it. Victor Berg discussed the Vital Force and our need to examine how to continue to produce it. Current research efforts, upcoming events, and the outreach and web information were presented.

During the conference and in the evaluations, many people requested that the discussion notes from the breakout session in which we envisioned about how to increase the number of people practicing TCC, be written up for the Vital Force. The small group discussions centered around two focal points, how to teach classes and support local teachers and then how to support the national/international groups that help teachers teach. The following lists have come from the twenty-two pages of notes that were turned in. Please note that not all groups turned in notes and that I have not edited the notes–all notes we received were included.

Hints to Support Teaching Classes for T’ai Chi Chih:

• do demonstrations for national organizations, especially ones you are involved with. go to a high end hotel-at a resort to give a one hour class for a few days and hand out information and sell videos. go to health care sites or health fairs to demonstrate and disseminate materials. go to police or fire departments or other high stress job sites to give classes. check with physical education teachers if you can teach TCC as part of their program. charter or alternative schools can be open to TCC. at a corporate setting-some companies are offering fitness/well being classes.

• find one person in an organization to create and spread interest–many opportunities in the local communities are being overlooked.

• some chiropractors may be open to offering a presentation for their patients. doctors are beginning to recognize the benefits of TCC-find one and work with that person and in turn recognize their work.

• physical therapy centers or medical students are a possible direction to go. students get inspired and may write about TCC in local outlets.

• meet the need of the targeted student.

• people have had problems starting classes because they are not known to their audience–offer open house, first class of a session could be offered as free, offer a reduced price to members of an organization. volunteer with an organization such as a grief center and then offer classes. offer free demonstration in a park setting and advertise it.

• have KG present more information about press releases–educate us about how to do them and make it easier for us to do it: press releases, how to scope out a reporter or print material.

• each area is unique-use your connections. one teacher asked his students to get a committee together to help launch work on a workshop. ask organizations to put out publicity for you.

• when you have an information or presentation be ready to explain about TCC–have flyers available. let them know what, when and where and how much. try to keep rates reasonable. educate about TCC and let them know about future series of TCC classes–have dates/prices known ahead of time.

• host a “how-to” one day seminar or workshop or weekend retreat.

• network with other teachers who have space and then do a workshop together for students. get together with other teachers in the area for support and practice, with students included.

• ask teachers who are teaching world religions if you can give a presentation.

• have practice sessions on a weekly or bi-weekly time frame for students you have taught.

• have a conferences for students-this would include both information and movement–maybe more regional.

• in our yearly conference, have a dual track with one for students and one for teachers–gives students an opportunity to meet the TCC community. this could be done as a 1/2 day right after our conference and 10 or 20 teachers could do activities with students.

• allow local students to attend the teacher conference.

• teach at retirement centers, especially if you live at one.

• teach ADH students before they do their learning.

• ask your students to bring a friend–could be adult or child to the class, could be the beginnings of your next class attendees.

• work on health insurance companies to get them to cover costs of taking a class.

• more studies showing benefits can be done. this may lead to more media opportunities. research, critical to continue studies of TCC.

• will we need an infrastructure in the future where there will be paid positions? perhaps area teachers can come together as a community? if there is huge jump in numbers should we have an infrastructure in place? more trainers may be needed. most teachers could handle more students right now.

• for our future, more younger people need to become involved both as students and as teachers. bring practice into schools, church youth groups, convention presentations, college credit courses in TCC, approach athletic groups and high school clubs.

• retreats open to students and teachers have been successful, even for beginners. it is a good introduction and can inspire them to want to continue.

• approach teaching TCC in different way–parent/child classes with such as girl scouts or boy scouts. TCC for couples at senior centers–or have senior and a relative attend classes.

• ongoing intermediate class that spreads the word to community and generates more beginning students. students are best advertisements.

• free silent practices at local hospitals.

• nominal fee for continuing advanced classes. teach at home to reduce fee.

• follow up calls and offer own phone number or email. keep notes to personalize contacts. offer flexible class hours.

• do practice during information sessions and allow TCC to wash over them.

• advertise at local business. check into free advertisement on community channel. put flyers up or demonstrate at colleges, wellness center, malls, libraries, art galleries, stores, chamber of commerce, grocery stores, realtors’ packets and churches.

• get on as speaker at programs for organizations or business conference. offer continuing education units for those professionals that need them.

• maintain a presence. write articles for newspapers, journals or on-line. just do it–practice out in public spaces. wear TCC clothing. go to county fairs and have a booth. be patient.

• encourage students and teachers to meet once a month for like two hours and exchange ideas, practice and share about TCC classes.

• paid professionals to bring TCC forward.

• take Vital Force to class to show students our official publication.

• cost of Vital Force included with cost of the class. have students write a letter to the VF.

• rededicate yourself to the community by doing something for the TCC community. organize the international membership into a community. if we remain wth the philosophy of the Chi then we will not fall into power struggles. keeping all people in the circle.

• teach one-on-one classes. or encourage students to be buddies with each other to encourage practice. make connections–present TCC as a tool for reduction of stress. in rural areas, use the internet–send daily commique about a quote(maybe weekly) such as “A still pond reflects the stars.” it could encourage your daily practice–sends out good thoughts–chi mail.

• each teacher needs to act on one item in KG’s press release packet.

• each new teacher has to figure out how to teach–if there was some way of having a designed look to TCC–develop business cards, pamphlets, TCC rubber stamp, a banner of the movements. we would like to see different materials already developed (by individuals) put out to everyone and a brochure template produced.

• have fixed schedule for meetings that will continue to foster community at intervals agreeable to the community.

How to Support International and National Groups that Help Teachers Teach

• we need to know when TCC teachers are going to offer intensives and trainings–not this fall but next year or in 2008. possibly regular scheduled teachers trainings.

VITAL FORCE

• could we put it on the internet and then print it out in each region and then mail it out to teachers in region? could each area contribute and collect information or articles and send them in?

• could a regional person get the online version and prints it up for others in their community and then do a regional mailing or hand out at quarterly meetings?

• if regions have to participate then it becomes more of an ownership issue.

• costs could be covered from fees.

• print the journal in one place then drop slip to a region that does the mailing.

• publish more information about research so the articles could be used by teachers to seek out TCC.

• continue interviews but could be shorter. like the humor. have regional -state news but cut back on people’s response to events. have a guideline for writing about an event and keep it focused. publish what other teachers are learning from teaching-how to improve service to public. publish articles on how to host a workshop or retreat–what is a typical agenda for such an event.

• include two pages directed towards students which could be used as handouts for classes.

CONFERENCE

• ideas for sessions at conference–how to research or how to get a proposal approved. how to teach continuing education credits. how to set up a google group for communication like a teachers bulletin board: it could be regional or all teachers, a way to combine smaller communities and/or a way to help students access for student information. how to set up a website so we can link to each other or even how to google when doing search for TCC.

INTENTION

• these notes are based upon notes taken in Athene Mantle’s discussion group-Athene presented this material at conference.

• it was suggesed that before and beneath all these tangible steps lies the power of intention and focus. decide what you want and stay focused on it. you may be only one teacher but you will become a powerful magnet by means of your intention. form the image and things will happen to support that image. the energy and focus will draw others–the Universal Energy will bring it about. set no limits on what may happen. the doing is not up to us. one idea will lead to another. people will be attracted to help: to promote that TCC idea. simply take the path one step at a time and the goal will be acheived. the example of Michael Monroe, who entertained the group, was given as an example.

Michael came to play and discovered that the TCC community might be an outlet and a source for his music. he discussed writing and producing a cd of music suitable for TCC practice–he had already written some great music he liked but felt it was not commerically viable and so had not made a cd of it yet–how does that Universal Energy work! one teacher since 1990, in this discussion group said she has seen how far the community has come by allowing the unfolding, by being open vessals to the chi, that growth will continue.

This group closed their discussion with a thought from Athene—imagine if everyone in the group at this conference went home and put out an intention regarding the growth of our international community and then focused on it, what could come about. There is no telling what could develop!

During the conference we handed out a bookmarker, with words on it that described to the Minnesota committee how it felt to be Encircled In Chi: free, supported, boundless, joyful, awed, peaceful, protected, honored, connected, comforted and loved. The Minnesota community hopes that the conference attendees felt Encircled In Chi and that they were able to feel that universal energy at work in their practice. And may that enriched practice, unfold in them an intention and focus to continue teaching and practicing in joy, beauty, love and in honor.