Dịch
by
Richard and Kimiko Tucker
“What sights did you see on your trip to London?” my mom asked after we returned home to the United States.
My wife, Kimiko, and I landed at Heathrow, got a train to Paddington Station, and then headed straight to Cheltenham for the Tai Chi Retreat. It was my first time in the UK.
Arriving at the retreat, we were promptly welcomed by Kasia Elvin, who was escorting fellow participants to their dormitories. She showed us the way to the registration, where we were again welcomed by the heart of this retreat, Barbara Carlisle, Erica Crome, Suni Hirani, Kasia Elvin, and more friendly members of the team.
We finished registering, settled into our room, then headed to dinner. We were happy to see a few familiar faces from the tai chi retreat in June 2024 in Connecticut at the Hotchkiss School in the United States.
As new apprentices, it was wonderful to be welcomed into a global tai chi community. We were warmed by the lifelong friendships among the Tai Chi Foundation apprentices and were delighted to be accepted as the “new kids on the block,” having attended our B1 apprenticeship at Hotchkiss.
That weekend, we had the opportunity to learn from others who have been teaching tai chi for many years and came from areas around the world, not only London and the UK but Austria, Ireland, Amsterdam, France, New York, Chicago, Florida, and Nashville.
Paul Campbell, Gerrie Sporken, and Greg Woodson shared generously of their knowledge, experience and feedback which we are still trying to digest and absorb.
I find it amazing that all of us, coming from so many different places, can do the same Tai Chi Form together using the same language.
I felt so gratified when participants told us how impressed they were while watching Mark Preston, Tess Lugos, Katrin Tschupp, Kimiko and I as we did the Tai Chi Form demonstration on the stage in sync at the orientation.
That feeling carried throughout the week as we started each morning with rounds on the cricket pitch which was a quick way to integrate us all into the retreat and connect with others. Lindi McAlpine, Kimiko and I led the rounds, and people loved it so much that we actually did extra rounds on the day of departure. As a bonus, Mark Preston stopped by a couple of times and gifted us with a reciting of poems by Hafiz.
The extensive class offerings were quite impressive and I wish I could join or observe every one of them! The generous teacher/student ratio was ideal for tai chi learning, and everybody seemed fully satisfied.
Here is a breakdown of who taught what at the retreat:
Tai chi B1: Kevin Lannon and Tess Lugos
Tai chi B2: Joan Campbell and Aileen Young
Tai chi B3: Michael Braudy, Ian Lopez, and Ikuyo Mitsuzono
Fundamentals: Joop Brouwer, Linda Bisberg, and Katrin Tschupp
Push Hands 1: Peter Kennedy, Anne Marie Gent, Anna Teeples
Push Hands 2: Koen Krikhaar, Vanessa Costigan, and Griff Steer
Sword and Fencing: Greg Woodson and Gerrie Sporken
PCal: Declan Rothwell and Barbara Carlisle
Sitting meditation: Patrice Wooldridge and Declan Rothwell
Hawaiian swimming: Ed Johnson, Declan Rothwell, and Katrin Tschupp
The evening activities were both fun and educational and I enjoyed participating in every one of them:
- Tuesday, we had a Bear & Owl drawing class led by Johanna Koelman and Colette McCormac, and I discovered I could draw!
- On Wednesday, Gerrie Sporken led an introduction to yin/yang and facial rejuvenation. I never imagined that my hand moving over the surface of my skin could be felt that way!
- Thursday, we had a special musical experience in the chapel led by Michael Braudy.
- On Friday, we watched the film The Professor: Tai Chi’s Journey West. I found it to be fascinating and inspiring.
- Saturday, we had theatre and the party. I was amazed to see so many talents on the stage. I laughed so hard my face was tired when it was over. The fun party followed, and we managed to say thank you and goodbye to some of the teachers, but I really felt words could not express enough of my gratitude.
In addition, the time spent at meals and in the evening at the bar by the Bacon Theater was a new concept for me as an American and an interesting experience. I appreciated getting to know many of our new friends there even more.
The cafeteria provided a large variety of freshly cooked food three times a day—including special dietary options—which was much appreciated. Sitting with people from all over Europe and the United States and chatting over a delicious meal (or just tea) was quite enjoyable and made it easy to feel like we were part of a big tai chi family. We talked about how we found tai chi, where we were from,what classes we were taking, our jobs, kids, hobbies, and more.
We are bringing new knowledge and skills of our own Tai Chi Form, which we learned at the retreat, back to Nashville, Tennessee,as we embarked this fall on our journey of teaching our first B1 class back with Anna Teeples, our senior teacher.
As I told my mom when we returned, I can’t say we saw many landmarks, but we wouldn’t have met and spent so much quality time getting to know the range of people we met at the retreat if we had taken the typical sightseeing vacation in London.
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Photos by Patrice Woodridge and Sas Vassle
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