On January the 15th I interviewed
Andrew at his new flat in Canton. He had been wanting to update his web site
for a while and this seemed the most natural and convenient way to do it.
It seems that this last year has seen almost non stop action. In terms of
his personal development, Andrew has continued with fitness development, Tai
chi, Aikido, Chi gung and he's also continued his 'feldenkrais' sessions ( a
form of therapy which helps him to regain suppleness and strength in his
muscles). The end of 2001 and the beginning of 2002 sees a really exciting
development for him however, as he starts his own Tai Chi classes. He has
been studying Tai Chi now for five years and he feels that he has enough
knowledge to be able to pass on to others, in a voluntary set up. The Tai
Chi classes are Yang style and will be taking place in a number of centres
around Cardiff in the near future. For details watch this space.
Roger Knight
R. So Andrew, what's new, what have you been up to
recently?
A. Well, I've continued all year with my Aikido, Tai Chi, my swimming and
feldenkrais sessions, but I've also been studying Japanese ( I do a swap
class with a Japanese lady. I help her with her English and she helps me
with my Japanese.) Last summer, I went to the Japanese festival in St Fagans
open air museum. It was excellent and I managed to meet and speak to a lot
of Japanese people here in Wales. Practising my Japanese was really
confidence boosting, and putting what I had learned into practice was a real
bonus.
R. How about your computer skills?
A. That's another new area. I've done a few courses and sending e mails,
checking my web site, surfing the net is now run of the mill for me, whereas
this time last year I could only manage my little word processor! It's
really exciting and I 've had a fair bit of feedback, people writing to me
etc. I usually put my cards out around town. I leave them in the health food
shops and give them out to mates and other people who I think may be
interested in self healing.
With the computers, I started down at the Internet cafe in Church Street. I
really enjoyed it there at first. It got me out of the flat and I found the
staff helpful and it was a nice feeling working on the computers while
others were doing their own stuff. Now though I've got a computer in the new
flat, and I can get on with things at home.
R. So you've been busy?
A. Things are moving along really well and I've been giving my Tai Chi
lessons at City Centre Youth Project (Grassroots) in Cardiff's town centre,
but right at this point in time I'm looking at a few community centres
around the city where I can give Tai Chi lessons on a voluntary basis
R. How about the Aikido?
A. Last summer I spent a lot of time doing some of my Aikido at Aberdare
which was quite a way to travel every week, but now I'm doing the exercises
at Plasnewydd Hall in the Roath area of Cardiff, and also at Llanrumney
Leisure Centre following on from what I've been doing for the last six
years. It's not so far to go. I also did the Chester Aikido Summer Camp
between the 4th and the 10th of August.
I've continued with Aikido on average twice a week, swimming twice a week,
Feldenkrais and Japanese once every other week. I've also done a 'Minds,
Brains and Science' course to further my understanding of how I can improve
myself, and maybe, how in time I can help others.
Lots of people have told me how much I'm improving which is really
encouraging and of course I hope that people will pick up on some of my
ideas for self healing and if the site inspires others to help themselves,
then that would be fantastic. My site gets visited regularly and the number
of hits is steadily going up, so I'm optimistic about the future. I'm in the
process of getting my business cards out which I leave in health shops and I
give to friends and so on. Articles in newspapers will also help to spread
the word. Ultimately, I'd like to publish a book about my experiences.
Oh, and I also had another Aikido course with Kenetska Sensi.
The main aim of Aikido with me is to soften up the muscles to keep me lithe
and fit. So far, so good. Before I had the accident I used to play a fair
bit of sport, so I was bound to get into something like this, but I would
also say that it would never have been my style to just sit back and accept
my lot. Currently I'm rated as 3rd Kyu.
R. How's your diet these days?
A. I'm doing my best to go completely organic. They spray everything in
chemicals and I want to avoid that, and it tastes better anyway!. I buy all
my fruit and vegetables locally and I'm sticking to my 'no dairy products
policy'. I eat loads of fish, chicken and liver. I prefer clean mineral
water over tap water and I don't drink alcohol or tea and coffee, but I do
enjoy herbal teas. I used to eat and drink so much rubbish before I had the
accident, but that's all behind me now.
R. What are your future plans?
A. Well right now I'm doing a first aid course in Barry ( Jan 2002) which
will help me to get public liability insurance for my Tai Chi classes. I'm
going to continue with Japanese and I'm going to do a one to one programme
with Languages Direct in Charles Street in Cardiff. Who knows? One day I
might live there. I got some financial support from ELWA for that.
R. That was handy! Well it all sounds so positive. As you always said,
'Step by Step' and you'll get there. With the modifications to the web site,
your Tai Chi lessons, your new Japanese programme not to mention you
continuing all the other things you do anyway, it sounds as if 2002 will be
an exciting year.
A. Well that's about it in a nutshell. My diet is excellent. I'm getting
fitter and stronger all the time and I'm on the road to developing my skills
as a tutor. This time last year I hardly knew what a web site was, now I've
got this one up and running, so watch this space for details about my
forthcoming Tai Chi lessons, and if anyone out there wants to get in touch,
don't hesitate, feel free to e mail me.
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