QI Gong Strong

Tulip allowed something new into her life during retirement — the ancient Chinese healing tradition called qi gong (chee-gong) . It is an effortless and sometimes mentally intense exercise, yet very calming to the heart, mind and soul. It diverts her thinking about the stresses and pressures of everyday life, creates a pause, a welcome pause, and sometimes even changes the trajectory of her life. It’s like a mysterious power, a cleansing of sorts. It’s a tremendous realization of how the mind can indeed transcend traditional health care practices or decisions that aim to restore personal confidence, self awareness and self love, as well as provide a more confident appreciation of simple self-help health practices, the power of nature and peaceful living.

Her first exposure to qi gong came on the Caribbean island of Aruba located at the southern most part of the main body of the big, blue, beautiful Sea. It is a simple, small Dutch island of 100,000 residents and almost solely depends on tourism for its economic survival. Most people work in the tourism industry and smart entrepreneurs have created sustainable businesses encompassing that reality.

When the words qi gong first appeared on the Daily Activities Board at the La Cabana Resort — where Tulip resides now and then, her typical  reaction was typical of anything new or unrecognizable : “Too weird, forget it!” 

But then, her curiosity peaked as she watched, from afar, the group of twelve sitting in chairs one Wednesday morning, barefooted, calm and oblivious to anything else around them, and just calmly and peacefully doing simple, slow leg, arm and head exercises. It was enough to bring Tulip out from behind the fully bloomed plumeria to sign up for the next session.  

Tulip refers to the entrepreneur/instructor as the “Island Shifu (teacher of qi gong”. She is a calm, pleasant, learned person with a very clear vision of the good life — a life of peace and harmony with the earth, nature and one’s inner self. 

Through brief conversations and a bit of research, Tulip has learned that she left the busyness and loudness of urban life in her motherland — The Netherlands, travelled around a lot, lived in different places and then finally settled in the warm, predictably quiet, serene life of a small island. She drew strength from her passion for meditative processes and natural, sensible health care, immersed herself in studying, learning and practicing various options, and has now created an empire of offerings for people of all walks of life, all ages and abilities, tourists and residents, to discover, appreciate and embrace. Her presentation truly reflects and respects a successful and happy matrimonial relationship between Mother Nature and humanity, and her demeanor envelops a genuine caring for the well being of those who join in.

Attendance has been consistently impressive and classes have sprung up at various locations, and at various times, to maximize access for the tourists and residents of the Island.  Sessions and special events are now being advertised on social media, on a website, and through word of mouth, making this entrepreneurial venture more than just a personal success story.

Thanks to the hard work, passion, commitment and dedication of “the Island Shifu of meditative medicine”, over the past two decades, the people of Aruba and tourists now have easy access to an impressive array of self help, self awareness and self care exercises such as Tai Chi, Tao Yoga, Breathing Therapy, Mind Ninja, Energy Healing, Sound Healing, Acupuncture and the amazing world of qi gong.

The humble Shifu has lifted her being and skillsets to great heights and all the while she has maintained her groundedness, as well as her calm and peaceful demeanor, getting much pleasure from sharing her passion and knowledge willingly and freely with others. In turn, she has encouraged and inspired a diverse mix of local people and tourists whose minds, spirits, bodies and lives have now been positively enriched, and impacted forever more.

Tulip, who lives a half a world away, is one of the beneficiaries of qi gong exercises and carries those skills proudly with her every day. She realises it is but one way to nurture her inner self, to keep the blood flowing and the breathing easy. It is also the best way for her to manage or avoid stress in her increasingly active retirement lifestyle, filled with a wide range of social, cultural, creative, recreational and community  activities and projects. Her life may seem overwhelming; but, short time-outs along the way for a bit of qi gong works amazingly better than any pill!

ADOPTION

 

Tulip attended a special viewing of a documentary about adoption at a local church auditorium in the community of Hammond recently. It was a very personal story about the life of an adoptee which is a topic that few ever really take the time to think about.

Chrystal was first adopted at around five days old. Originally the plan was for her to join a family of four who wanted a boy. Almost immediately the plan changed and she was adopted by a family of four who really wanted a girl.

Her adoptive family loved her fully from day one. She had a fantastic upbringing and they made her aware of her adoption early in life. The limited information available at the time was that she was of indigenous heritage and the birth mother wanted her to have a better chance in living a good life. The best part was the family never made her feel adopted or different from her brothers. She was always one of them, and equally loved.

As outsiders looking in one might say well that was 100% fantastic. But the reality is that it was not 100% fantastic for Chrystal. Something was missing and she needed to find it. 

Feelings were driving her to continually think about her adoption and to react to it — why it happened, why it had to happen, who was her birth mom and her circumstances etc. For her, being adopted was kind of like missing a limb and after years of fighting it, in various ways for various reasons, after she married and had children of her own, she finally took the giant step forward to find out.

It was a hard and emotional journey that started with ancestry DNA testing leads and ends with a plethora of events: meeting her mom, meeting blood relatives, visiting the grave sites on Cree Nation in Manitoba, familiarizing herself with her history and culture, feeling her spirit reconcile with her being, and then even meeting her father who had no idea she existed.

Tulip has learned that adoption hits people in different ways. It impacts not only the adoptee, but also the birth mother, the birth father, adoptive parents and siblings, and all the relatives. The reality is that it is hard on everyone, and not every example works out.

Chrystal’s life has come fully circle and her documentary speaks to her character: determined, passionate, tenacious and resilient; both her upbringing and her late in life discoveries, plus her supportive husband and children, leave her feeling blessed and honoured, and still ready to learn more.

IONA CAMPAGNOLO

I had a hard time sleeping last night as I was thinking about death and dying.  The thoughts were triggered by the recent passing of one of my inspirations — a wonderful woman who steadfastly created a trail for others; a person who was a devoted daughter, wonderful mother to two fine women, a grandmother, politician, non-politician, a radio and television show host, a staunch defender of the Indigenous file and friend to indigenous peoples, British Columbia’s Lieutenant Governor and someone who encouraged me in my quest to become a creative writer. Her name: Iona Campagnolo and I met her in 1980. Our paths crossed many times since.

One of the first creative pieces I shared with her was my first self-published short story entitled Ratz Tales.  Years later when she become our Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia, Canada, she remembered the main character in the story was architect Francis Rattenbury who was nicknamed Ratz. While living at Government House she was told that the table in her private dining room on the second floor was designed by Rattenbury. She knew I just had to be invited over for a visit. The visit happened and I was so honoured.  That speaks to her character.

I pondered over that experience for a very long time and doing so enabled me to craft a unique poem that described her life then, and also applied to her many years of ongoing life. 

I called the poem The Ivy Sea.  Her initials were I.V.C. and her life unfolded (metaphorically) much like a very healthy ivy plant that reaches great heights. Its arms branch out in many directions, much like a wide open sea, and each remain strong, confident and determined. That describes her character and her spirit. 

GROWING AND GROWING, UP AND DOWN THE ROCK HILL

FINDING A WAY WITH A VERY STRONG WILL

BRANCHING AND REACHING HEIGHTS ONCE UNKNOWN

DEFYING THE ODDS, MOVING ALL ON HER OWN

TENACIOUS AND CAREFUL, DETERMINED TO SPREAD

CONFIDENCE AND VISION, WHILE PASSING THE BREAD

SHE CLIMBS TO THE MOUNTAINS AND DOWN TO THE GROUND

IMPRESSES MANY PEOPLE AND LIVES SAFE AND SOUND

IVY SEA, IVY SEA, LIKE A MOUNTAIN OF WEALTH

WORTHY OF MUCH HAPPINESS AND YEARS OF GOOD HEALTH.

Iona: as you now rest in peace, a state you so richly deserve, thank you for including me in parts of your life; for appreciating the poem, encouraging me, enjoying pub fare and for your lifelong commitment to good citizenship. You have given all of us who know you, have met you and have followed your lifespan, so much nutrition to apply to our own lives; together we all will work hard to keep our own “ivy” seeds growing.

Rest in peace fine lady.

FUN WITH LAUGHTER

 

This week Tulip found herself at the Maple Ridge Library in a room filled with other curious seniors ready to enjoy a session about the power of laughter.

The hosts, Bubble Gum and Billy her clown husband, were long time residents who met more than fifty years ago in Montreal, 3000 miles east of where they live now. They had been asked to step in at a neighbour’s birthday party to entertain the children. They winged an act, were well received and found their calling. Five decades later here they were still loving the good life, now entertaining seniors.

Bubble Gum and Billy brought youthfulness to the room with their stories, puppeteering, ventriloquism and balloon twisting. Their audience was mesmerized while remembering the days of olde and finding themselves reemerged in joyful laughter and fun. Their joy emulated in their eyes, cheeks, ears and mouth, as suddenly the realities of aging, the sadness of loss, the difficulties in movement and stresses of finances were forgotten ever so briefly, perhaps restoring a sense of hope and promise and youthfulness to carry them forward with a boosted sense of happiness and memories of playful fun.

They all certainly were given a lot to laugh about and given a lot to reflect on, as they each strolled home with smiles stretching from cheek to cheek — including Tulip as she carried her rather oddly shaped yellow balloon home with her while laughing tears poured from her eyes. Artwork was never her strong point!

RECONCILIATION COAT

Reconciliation Coat

Last year I was gifted the most beautiful coat on Earth! It’s become synonymous with the Dolly Parton song “The Coat of Many Colours” that her mamma made for her. I love that song for all the reasons it was written, and I love this coat for all the reasons it needed to be made. I call it my reconciliation coat.

The issue of reconciliation has finally become front and center in all discussions relating to better understanding both indigenous and “whiteman” history dating back to before Confederation. The reality of those days were wrought with many unpleasant colours: trickery, malice and misunderstandings across the board. Did honour not matter. No.  Does honour still not matter?

A lot of people from both sides have no idea what really went down back then. Sadly some of them don’t want to know or they adopt the stereotype messaging that has shamed them and all of us deeply.  Others simply don’t care. The school curriculum up to recently has either been void of any information, or projected images or impressions that were slanted or just plain wrong. A lot of other people know about the wrongs but walk around with their heads in the sand, and don’t engage in, nor support, efforts to restore honour, pride and respect. 

Then there is the rest of civilized society who do know what went down “back then” and since “then”. They also do know what’s been going on behind the scenes, and feeling somewhat confident that more people are finally “getting it”, understanding it and embracing efforts to listen, learn and reconcile. 

Yes there will always be the skeptical, the angry and the naysayers on both sides of the coin. But, I am happy that the key players on both sides are at the table, and making progress. They are finally more serious than ever about acknowledging the treachery of foreign dominance, colonialism, and subsequent ongoing trickery and malice, and more determined than ever to enable a parallel peaceful humane existence — void of the evil of past ways.

When we actually look at some of the fabulous indigenous success stories in British Columbia — the Musqueam, the Burrard, the Osoyoos, the Gitxsan, Nisga’a, and Tsawwassen to name a few, I proudly wear the message on my sleeve. Together we can make it happen. Oh and yes … honour does matter.

FULL CIRCLE

 FULL CIRCLE MOMENT AT DEER LAKE

Tulip enjoyed  another flashback moment the other day. She met her friend long term Joan at Deer Lake Regional Park in Burnaby — a community where she once lived during her teen years. It is a site that has been beautifully developed over the years, once including the playground for medium security inmates of what was known as the Oakalla prison.

As they wandered along the full circle lakeshore pathway, on freshly rained upon cedar planks, they looked over and saw a bunch of fishers on a dock near the beach. Curiosity led them off the path to find out what they were trying to catch. They approached quietly, and slowly, so as to not negatively impact the fishing outcome, and as soon as one head turned to them, they whispered “what are you hoping to catch?”

“Rainbow trout,” said one as he bent over to open a zip sealed plastic bag to proudly show his catch. Instantly Tulip just had to react to share her childhood memory of being a young successful fisher of rainbow trout.

“I’d stick a live slimy worm on a hook tied to a sturdy bamboo pole and wait for a bite. After each catch I would knock a large stone on its head, cut open its belly, remove the guts, and sprinkle it with salt. Within moments I would have lit the kindling laid out between large rocks, placed a cast iron frying pan on top of the flame, waited for the butter to melt, and then fried up the tastiest and freshest trout possible. It truly was incredible.”

“Where did you do that?”

“High up in the mountains at a creek named Scuzzy.”

“How old were you?”

“Ten, and if I caught more than two, I’d take the rest home.”

The man was speechless as his eye lids lifted to their max and his eyeballs rolled in disbelief. Some of the other guys who were clearly listening in, looked in her direction and were equally astounded, as the two grey haired ladies wandered back to the path to carry on with their journey.

“Could you do it again now?”, asked Joan.

“Absolutely! A full circle moment. Next time we come here, let’s bring rods, a pan and Coleman stove.”

“Okay,” she said. “And I will bring the wine!”

POWER OF YOGA

 POWER OF YOGA

POEM 

Antoinetta DeWit

Spring 2024

To The Beat of Ten

From Mother Earth grows the healthiest seed

From which we should take the yoga-based lead

Meaning never give up nurturing life

Nor giving up when feeling lost in strife.

Hope can sometimes be difficult to see

When we are feeling sad and in great need

Feel healing power in the yoga way

 That teaching moment stays with you all day.

Yoga, like seeds, is able to respond

In ways to help improve the human bond

The bond that binds your inner you with you

And guides you through exactly what to do.

It may seem strange to reflect in this way

But best to keep your negatives at bay

Optimists hydrate and nurture the soul 

A meditative soul scores the best goal.

CONNECTIONS

 Connecting Indigenous Art and Qi Gong

Recently Tulip embarked on another sunny day cycle around the many magnificent cycling paths of the community of Pitt Meadows, British Columbia. As she slowly pressed on the pedals just hard enough to keep the bicycle upright and balanced, she got to thinking about just that — upright and balanced: exactly how life has become.

A few years ago, while enjoying her home away from home, on an Island in the southern most point of the main body of the Caribbean Sea, she was introduced to something very new, new to her; some would say “off the grid” new — especially for her.

It was around a time when her work life was crazy, and crazy busy. In retrospect, she was heading down a downward spiral, when the greatest job on earth only existed in a bubble — until an election was called, piercing the bubble and blowing everything away except an amazing severance package. Off to Aruba she flew and took a giant leap forward, out of her comfort zone, tried something new and has never looked back.

Tulip was introduced to the meditative ancient art of qi gong, a Chinese system of physical and mental exercises, and breathing control related to tai chi — a form of Yoga that draws in the power of nature, and opens up one’s inner thoughts, feelings and wisdom that are often ignored, overlooked and undervalued.

Sessions of qi gong during visits to Aruba have unleashed the realization of inner energy fields that help put life into perspective, and bring out the tremendous power of peace to one’s mind, body and soul. Work and people have their roles in life, but they mask or hinder optimum inner health. 

Paying attention to, and understanding one’s inner self, through meditation or quiet thinking, helps people understand their relationship with themselves, and their relationships with others better. It also helps them to adjust and adapt their routines and habits along the way — this truly is the greatest gift to receive from one’s self, and a bonus gift Tulip gives herself every single trip to her home away from home, in the always sunny and always warm, peaceful feeling that Aruba radiates. 

When one lives in a very busy urban area, it is nearly impossible to find time or outdoor places for effective peaceful meditation. Tulip has found much solace while cycling, at her own pace, along the dykeways surrounding her community, slowly breathing in fresh air through the nose and out through the mouth, connecting with nature, and creating her own aura of peace.

On this particular sunny Spring day, her cycling journey brought her to the brand new exhibit at the Pitt Meadows Art Gallery. A local indigenous artist and motivational speaker named Rain Pierre, a proud member of the Katzie First Nation, was granted the entire gallery to introduce his incredible work to the world. His work and the music that plays subtly in the background, awakens the senses and creates an ambiance of calm and inner peace. His work is beautiful and mesmerizing. Some of his mottos are “Be who you want to be” and “stop looking over your shoulder”. “Draw strength from your inner voice, dream big and move forward.”

Rain’s life has been a journey, a difficult personal journey that has led him to this amazing spot or place or destiny. He discovered his inner voice and developed an incredible outcome, through artistic expression, from which peace and harmony radiates. 

Tulip stares at any one of his pieces; they easily draw her in much like the magic of qi gong, connecting her to her inner voice and her inner energy, guiding her, helping her, strengthening her and bringing her to actually feeling the connective power of peace from nature, water, mountains, trees, sacred animals, cultural traditions,  actual friends, and supportive family, all the while comfortably embracing her life — all the good it has to offer and all the good she gives to it.

Feeling upright and balanced, and connected, Tulip leaves the exhibit, hops back on her bicycle, upright, balanced and connected, smiling and laughing with joy — life truly is much better than a box of chocolates! Much, much better. “Make it a beautiful ride,” she says.

https://www.rainawakens.com/works