Enjoy a variety of holistic practitioners and find great gift
ideas while you support our local community. Proceeds are being donated
to 541 Eatery & Exchange - a place where people can share with one another & everyone has a place at the table.
We will be offering mini Muscle Tuning Sessions at this event.
Join
our world wide event and help create a wave of positive energy that will
travel around the earth, heart to heart, one time zone at a time! You’ll have fun with simple and easy
techniques you can use to boost your physical energy and mental focus.
Dance the meridian dance. Wake up your muscles to increase your range
of motion and reduce discomfort. Power-on your brain, tune-up your
ears and switch-on your eyes. Learn an emotional stress release
technique you can use on yourself, friends and family. Gentle movements are involved, so dress comfortably. Kids are welcome. When: Saturday September 28, 2019 Time: 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Where: Trinity Presbyterian Church, 720 Ninth Ave., Hamilton ON
Qi Gong is part of an ancient Chinese exercise and healing system. "Qi" roughly translates to vital energy, information, breath or spirit. "Gong" means work, cultivation or mastery. Qi Gong is
therefore sometimes translated as "energy work", "vital energy cultivation" or "mastery
of your energy."
When you practice the slow, mindful physical movements of Qi Gong you're training to have more resiliency, balance, flexibility, focus and awareness by bringing qi
into the muscles, bones and tendons through specifically designed
routines. Qi Gong is also a highly effective way to lessen the effects of aging and manage your stress.
I recently attended the World Qi Gong Congress held in Toronto Ontario. I attended only one day of the four day event. That one day was so jam-packed with information, demonstrations and lectures I can't imagine my brain absorbing three more days worth!
"The Magic of Qi Gong" with Lee Holden
I was lucky enough to participate in demonstrations in two of the workshops I attended. The first workshop was "Energetics of Push Hands" with Lama Tantrapa. Though it was aimed at beginners (which I am not) I was very impressed by his down-to-earth style, depth of knowledge, and skill. He had been teaching us how to be rooted so when pushed we wouldn't lose our balance. When he asked me to participate in a demo by pushing him, I applied all my Tai Chi principles and complied. And pushed him off balance! He'd under estimated my abilities, so he re-took his stance and told me to push him again. I pushed him off balance again, though less so this time. At this point he turned to the crowded room and announced "She is very powerful". Yes - Lama Tantrapa said I was powerful! I was thrilled. And totally impressed by his lack of ego. He took his stance again and told me to push. It was like pushing on jello. I couldn't find his centre and just rolled off one side or the other, no matter how many times I tried. It was obvious I was no match for him once he stepped up his game. But he'd had to step up his game - proof my years of studying Tai Chi haven't been wasted!
The second workshop was with Dr. Effie Chow. This tiny lady (I don't think she's five feet tall) is at least sixty-five years old and was sporting a cane. She asked four large people to come to the front. I was sitting in the second row - she pointed to me and told me to come up. I'm overweight, and being selected for my size was hard on my ego, but I went up there anyway. Once at the front we were told to announce our weight into the microphone so everyone could hear. Gulp. Well, I figured everyone could see I was overweight, so what was the big deal about putting a number on it? So I proudly stated my true weight. (I guess the glow from the "She is very powerful" comment hadn't worn off yet. ) Someone in the audience added it all up - together the four of us weighed over 800 lbs. Dr. Chow told us to stand in a line, congo-style and plant ourselves firmly, but not to push back if we felt pushed. She leaned on the first guy in line, but couldn't budge him. Then she used her chi to push instead of her muscles. She pushed all four of us backward! I was the furthest away from her yet still felt a smooth, solid and relentless energy push me back. It was amazing.
Dr. George Love's workshop on Qi Gong to prevent/heal cancer was awesome. Dr. Love is charismatic and inspiring and emanates a passionate and fun-loving energy. I was so impressed with him I bought his DVD and plan to learn his Meridian Qi Gong exercises. The DVD came with a bonus disk of his Qi Gong music video which is also on Youtube. Watch it here and see his incredible energy for yourself.
Not only are trees beautiful, trees are really important to the health of our planet, and by extension, to our own personal health. Here's some of the things trees do for us:
Trees are our planet's lungs. They convert the CO2 humans exhale into oxygen. According to http://coloradotrees.org/, an adult tree can change 48 pounds of carbon every year into enough oxygen to keep two people alive.
Trees reduce ozone levels. In large cities this can mean milder temperatures and more breathable air.
Trees prevent soil erosion - their roots stop soil from washing away.
Trees moderate temperatures. They absorb summer heat, cast some shady relief and provide a windbreak from chilly winter winds.
Trees provide food in the form of fruit, nuts and even maple syrup (yum).
Working out our issues, healing our injuries (both physical and spiritual) and finding/following our path can be a lot of hard work. But that doesn't mean we can't have fun along the way. Here's a few ideas to get you started:
+ go for a walk in the woods
+ try out the swings down at the park
+ walk a labyrinth
+ paint with finger paint
+ jump in a puddle
+ sing really loud
+ dance to a silly song
+ watch the moon rise
If you don't feel comfortable doing these things on your own, recruit a kid to go along with you. Kids really know how to have fun!
If you never did, you should. These things are fun, and fun is good. Dr. Seuss
