the universal post - kuo lien ying 2005 - 12 for print.pdfthe universal post guang ping ... second,...
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Nonprofit Organization Volume 8 Issue 4 December 2005
The Universal Post GUANG PING YANG T’AI CHI ASSOCIATION
WHAT’S INSIDE
From The President 2
Out of Nick’s Library 2
2005 Conference - Picture Recap 4
. . . Surprise! 9
Membership Reminder 12
2005 Conference - A Pictorial Recap
2006 Conference Details Set! CELEBRATING 10 YEARS
In 2006 the Guang Ping Yang T'ai Chi Association's an-nual conference returns to the Quail’s Inn Resort in San Diego. Plans are under way for another great east coast
conference. Mark your calendars - you don’t want to miss all the fun!
Start Planning Now to Attend!!! September 15, 16 and 17, 2006
Above: Some of Friday’s attendees Right: Some of Sunday’s Attendees
More Pictures Inside
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For those of you I haven't met at past conferences I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Randy Elia and I have been involved in mar-tial arts for over 30 years, and the Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi Association since 1999. As the new President of the GPYTCA I would first like to thank Dominick Ruggieri for his
numerous contributions as President. During his term, Dominick helped us develop the Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi website, along with many other innovations that have proven to be invaluable in keeping the organiza-tion functioning efficiently. Again, thank you Dominick. Second, I would like to thank Grand Master Henry Look for always supporting the Association and for sharing his vast knowledge of and expertise in Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi and Yi Chuan with all of us. I would also like to thank Master Yang Fu Kui, who has greatly impressed everyone with his internal skills in Xing Yi and Yi Chuan. His enthusiastic involve-ment in the Association is much appreciated. And last, but certainly not least, I would like to thank you, the members of GPYTCA, for your ongoing sup-port of the Association. The core of any good organi-zation is its membership and we value your continued participation, be it by attending our annual conferences or simply by being members. The 2006 conference will mark the tenth anniversary for the GPYTCA and we anticipate having a special program commemorat-ing Kuo Lien Ying and his efforts to preserve and spread awareness of Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi. I look forward to my term as President and I will do my best to serve the interests of you, our members. Please feel free to contact me at any time with any suggestions you might have to make the Association function better for you. I look forward to hearing from you. Sincerely, Randy Elia
A Book Review By Nick D’Antoni
Tai Chi Walking: A Low-Impact Path to Better Health By: Robert Chuckrow, Ph.D.
©2002 Publisher: YMAA Publication Center, Boston, MA ISBN: 1-886969-23-X Robert Chuckrow holds a Ph.D. in physics and was a student of Master Cheng Man-ch’ing, credentials that could lead one to approach this book with fairly high expectations. Unfortunately, overall I found T’ai Chi Walking... to be somewhat disappointing and unsatis-fying. I intended to have this review ready for the previous edition of the U.P., but for some reason I just couldn’t get myself to finish. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised because that parallels my experience of reading the book as well. I found that it didn’t hold my interest very well after the first few chapters. In the first few chapters he has some good things to say and an occasional intriguing notion. He summa-rizes and reviews some of the basic philosophical prin-ciples underlying t’ai chi, discusses some of the bene-fits of the practice, presents ways of correcting some common errors in alignment and ways of walking poorly, and examines the mechanics of the body in motion walking and explores ways to use proper walk-ing as a beneficial exercise. And he presents these ideas about ways to integrate basic t’ai chi principles of proper structure and alignment into the everyday activity of walking fairly clearly, if a bit simplistically at times. However, around chapter five (there are fourteen chapters in all) things start to go awry. Although the book begins with clear intent and direc-tion it quickly loses focus. It devolves into a catch-all for a collection of loosely related odd bits and ideas that the author finds interesting or feels compelled to share. Some of these digressions, such as ways of making one’s own shoes, proper ways to tie one’s shoelaces, the nearly two pages devoted to his idea of the only proper way to wash one’s feet, or the ten-dency for shoes with heels to foreshorten the tendons
(Continued on page 3)
FROM THE PRESIDENT OUT OF NICK’S LIBRARY
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Donations
Special Thanks
The Association would like to take time to give special thanks to:
Grandmaster Henry Look Raymond J. Ahles Lorna Byrne Sebastian R. Caramagno Nick D’Antoni Dr. Ira Esformes Donald Hediger Thomas Kalber Jeannie B. Miller Susan J. Payne Scott Schneider Lynn Sharp
The above contributed donations to the Association in addition to their annual membership or just to support the organiza-tion.
Thank you again for your thoughts and support!
in the lower legs, are indeed at least somehow related. Even though many of the other digressions, such as explanations about how the body metabolizes fat or why we need salt, are interesting, even useful, they just don’t really seem to belong here. Also, I found many of the personal stories used as illus-trations, in what seems an effort to establish a more intimate tone with the reader, to be generally periph-eral. Then there is an entire chapter (Chapter 7) de-voted to “Vision Improvement.” While the information here is interesting and may be helpful to those with eye problems I found it to be out of place and distracting. The story of his own experience with alternative vision healing methods highlights their existence yet provides no useful information, such as the name of system(s) or the location of the practitioner he visited. It is not only pretty irrelevant to the book, but could also be quite frustrating to anyone reading the book who actually wanted to learn anything about these methods or seek similar help for themselves. The story of how the au-thor got lost and disoriented one night while driving on Long Island Sound and was able to re-orient himself, the trick he said lie in “...visualizing the relationships of the earth, sun, and moon or memorizing a few basic facts”, may present an interesting parable about keep-ing one’s head but certainly seems out of place here. There are many more such dalliances. I found the overall tone of the book to be bit didactic in places, nearly always overly simplistic, and occasion-ally, though unintentionally I’m sure, a little disparag-ing of his readers’ intelligence. Dr. Chuckrow’s book could have benefitted greatly from the assistance of a good editor. For example, the book is full of state-ments like these sub-topic opening sentences in the chapter entitled “Walking Safely.” For the sub-section “Flies”, “One or more flies buzzing around your head can be quite annoying.” And for “Dogs”, “Dogs are usually polite because they know that they are living in a human world in a dependent mode.” And one of my favorites from the section “Thorns”, “Having a thorn embedded in your finger can be very uncomfortable.” WOW! REALLY?!?! Between discussions of the virtues of velcro vs old fashioned shoe laces, the way the eye sees and what is meant by 20-20 vision, sunburn vs suntan, and where
(Continued from page 2)
(Continued on page 10)
OUT OF NICK’S LIBRARY (CONT.)
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Guang Ping Yang T’a i Chi Associat ion ’s Conference 2005
October 28, 29, 30, 2005
Cha tea u Hotel and Conferenc e Cente r
Scott Schneider leads morning warm-ups and set.
Page 5 The Universal Post
A PICTORIAL RECAP
Grandmaster Henry Look teaches attendees about I Chuan (Yiquan) and internal principles.
Attendees take a few moments to share thoughts.
Page 6 The Universal Post
Yang Fu Kui works with the group on Yiquan and Xing Yi.
Left: Paki Sukwattana teaches a form designed for arthritics. Below: Lucy Bartimole leads the group in the basics of meditation.
Page 7 The Universal Post
Above: Dominick Ruggieri leads weapon drills and applications.
Above: Randy Elia teaches internal principals. Right: Trica Boucher and attendees relax into a stretch.
Page 8 The Universal Post
Right: Larry Riddle talks about acupuncture points and leads a Dayan (Wild Goose) Qigong set.
Saturday night demonstrations.
By: Nick D’Antoni A very special moment happened at the 2005 Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi Association’s Annual Conference. It was an example of the kind of thing that I, personally, have been waiting and hoping to experience for nearly as long as I’ve been involved with the Associa-tion. I was sitting at the registration desk on Saturday morning and a man walked up to intro-duce himself. Now, I knew the name of this “new” person from his pre-registration and I knew that he could only attend for one day and that he lived in New York City (NYC). Since Randy Elia is the closest teacher of Guang Ping to New York and has some students who live in the city, I’d assumed Randy would know him. So when we were going over the pre-registrations before the conference I asked Randy and he didn’t know him either. This meant that as the conference began I already had some curiosity about the “mystery man.” So when Walter Gafforio arrived that Saturday morning and signed in, several of us began to talk with him to learn more about him, how he’d found us, and why he was interested in our
conference. We were all in for a big, and very pleasant surprise. It turned out that Walter was not only a “long lost” member of our Guang Ping T’ai Chi family, but he was in fact our first contact with the lost lineage of Master Yang who taught Guang Ping in NYC many years ago! He had studied with Master Yang until he “disappeared”, and has continued practicing since then on his own. Master Yang had made a trip back to China about thirty years ago, and no one seems to have seen or heard from him since. Although, Walter did tell us that Master Yang’s wife and daughters still run a business in New York City. Master Yang was a senior student of Master Kuo Lien-ying in Taiwan, along with Master Peter Kwok, Master Y. C. Chiang, Master Hu (who went to Brazil), and two or three others who emigrated at about the same time. As luck would have it, Walter had been Master Yang’s very first student in New York City! He’d been sent to him all the way from California by Master Chiang. As Walter related his story you could feel the energy and excitement in the group of us who were talking with him. It was a wonderful and amazing moment. At last we had actually re-connected with a missing link in our t’ai chi family tree! It was great to have the chance to spend the day getting to know Walter a bit and as the day progressed more stories of the old days came up. There were of course lots and lots of questions directed at him from many of us, and he was generous with his time and the sharing of what he knew about his Sifu and others that he knew who also studied with Master Yang. There were of course many questions that could not be answered, and the day went by too fast for some of us and Walter had to return to the City to work. Before he left, however, Walter made a very generous and meaningful gift to the Association of three profession-ally copied photographs of Master Yang, from the late 60’s or early 70’s. These photos make a valuable addition to our historical archive, and Walter
has given the Association permis-sion to use them on the website or wherever they may be needed. THANK YOU, WALTER!!!… and Welcome to the Family!
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. . . SURPRISE!
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Honorary Chairman: Y. C. Chiang, CA Honorary Chairman: Henry Look, CA [email protected] Honorary Chairman: Donald Pickens Rubbo, CA
Honorary Chairman: Nina Hopkins Sugawara, CA
Board of Directors
President: Nick D’Antoni, WA [email protected]
Vice-President: Dominick Ruggieri, NJ [email protected]
Vice-President Elect & Treasurer: Randy Elia, NJ [email protected] Fu-Tung Cheng. CA Patricia Boucher, CA Paki Sukwattana, OH Lawrence Riddle, WI
National Advisors David Chin*, Fayetteville, NC Bing Gong*, San Francisco, CA Jonathan Shear*, Richmond, VA Valerie Prince, Newport Beach, CA Diane Hoxmeier, Cape Cod, MA Joanna Schoon, Newport Beach, CA Heng Sure, Berkeley, CA Randy Elia, Emerson, NJ George Lakoff, Berkeley, CA Fritjof Capra, Berkeley, CA William Wong Chin, New York, NY Carlan Steward, Sacramento, CA Daniel Lee, Duarte, CA Richard Peck, Plano, TX Timothy Smith, Fayetteville, NC Cheryl-Lynne Rubbo*, CA *Kuo Lien Ying Direct Students
Membership Coordinator Valarie Prince P.O. Box 1528, Laguna Beach, CA 92652
Webmaster Dominick Ruggieri [email protected]
Honorary Chairmen Y. C. Chiang, CA Henry Look, CA
Past Presidents Nick D’Antoni, WA October 2001-October 2003
Nina Sugawara, CA March 2000-October 2001
Donald Rubbo, CA October 1998-March 2000
Henry Look, CA February 1996—October 1998
Dominick Ruggieri, NJ October 2003—October 2005
Board Members President: Randy Elia, NJ [email protected]
Vice-President Elect: To Be Announced [email protected]
Vice-President: Lawrence Riddle, WI [email protected]
Treasurer: Paki Sukwattana, OH [email protected]
Secretary: To Be Announced Patricia Boucher, TX [email protected]
Nick D’Antoni, WA [email protected]
Lucy Bartimole, OH [email protected]
Scott Schneider, NC [email protected]
Mary Sturtevant, NH [email protected]
Dominick Ruggieri, NJ [email protected]
National Advisors Valerie Prince, Newport Beach, CA JoAnna Gee Schoon, Laguna Beach, CA Daniel Lee, Duarte, CA Jonathon Shear, Richmond, VA Paul Taylor, San Francisco, CA
Membership Coordinator Julie Li c/o Peter Kwok’s Kung-Fu Academy 207 Kinderkamack Road Emerson, NJ 07630 [email protected]
Web www.guangpingyang.org
Webmaster: Lucy Bartimole [email protected]
Editor’s Corner Editor: Kristina Riddle PO Box 386, Schofield, WI 54476 Email: [email protected]
The editor reserves the right to edit any material or article submitted for publication.
The Universal Post and/or Universal Post, title of the Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi Association’s newsletter, copyright 2005©by Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi Association. All rights reserved. Non Profit Organization.
!!! FREE MONEY !!!
Did you know that the Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi Association has a grant program? Let us help you make things happen. GPYTCA Mini-Grant funds are still available to help sponsor special workshops, teaching residen-cies, and other t’ai chi events. Why wait?
For complete details and a downloadable Grant Application Packet, go to the Association’s web-site, www.guangpingyang.org, and click on the “Grant Program” button at the top of the page. Or you can con-tact Nick D’Antoni by mail: 962 Hobson St., Walla Walla, WA 99362; by email: [email protected]; or by phone: 509-529-2028, to request a full informa-tion packet and application materials.
Apply for a Mini-Grant, get a share of the free money, and help do something worthwhile to promote the mis-sion of the Association. Don’t put it off.
Do it TODAY!
NOT to be when lighting strikes, Chuckrow does make some good points about body structure and alignment and how to connect proper alignment with ways of walking. He even provides clear instructions, with several photo illustrations, for the proper way to place your feet when walking up and down stairs. But I don’t think this particular book needs to be high on your reading list. Rating: (out of 5)
Out of Nick’s Library . . . (Continued from page 3)
☯ ☯ ☯
California Norma Austin
David Bernhardt [email protected]
Fu-Tung Cheng
Yun-Chung Chiang
Kathleen Giustino
Bing Gong [email protected]
Michael Hogan
Daniel Lee [email protected]
Henry Look
Jo Presbury Smith [email protected]
Valarie Prince Gabel
Roger Ramey [email protected]
JoAnna Schoon
Nina Sugawara Chi [email protected]
Randall Sugawara
Paul Taylor [email protected]
Allen Trigueiro
Costa Rica Ed Orem
Denmark Inger Jensen
Florida Gary Torres
Illinois Steven Kemps
Japan Daniel Harrington
Michigan Barbara Kelly-Ferris [email protected]
New Hampshire
Peggy Simone [email protected]
Mary Sturtevant, M. Ed.
New Jersey Ray Ahles
201-385-3130
Thomas Carney
Randy Elia [email protected]
Ira Esformes
Mark Gates
Dennis Glanfield [email protected]
Patrick Hanvey
Richard Kosch
Marilyn Mathews
Rosalind Ressner
Gary Rosenblum
Dominick Ruggieri [email protected]
Michael Vassallo
North Carolina David Chin
Scott Schnieder [email protected]
South Carolina
Stephan Pilot
Ohio Lucy Bartimole
Jeff Burton [email protected]
Paki Sukwattana
Rhode Island Diane Rabinowitz
Texas Patricia Boucher
Virginia Jonathan Shear
Washington
Nicholas D’Antoni [email protected]
Lynn Sharp
Wisconsin Kristina Riddle
Wilkes Covey III [email protected]
Joy Foye
Dan Murphy [email protected]
Roger Parmeter
Lawrence Riddle [email protected]
Page 11 The Universal Post
Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi Association Teachers
Certifie
d
Correction: Some names were inadvertently missing from the list in the last issue. We apologize for this oversight.
c/o Wisconsin Wen Wu School PO Box 386 Schofield, WI 54476-0386 USA
GUANG PING YANG T’AI CHI ASSOCIATION
stamp
RAISE RIGHT HAND (Yu Ti Shou)
Calendar of Events
2006 Newsletter Deadlines
February 1 May 1
August 1 November 1
Disclaimer: The events listed above are provided as a re-
source. They are not sponsored or endorsed by the GPYTCA.
Photo and description taken from: “Tai Chi Chuan in Theory and Practice” By: Kuo Lien Ying
Mission Statement Guang Ping Yang
T’ai Chi Association
To promote, perpetuate, develop interest in, and preserve the quality of Guang Ping Yang style T’ai Chi
Chuan throughout the world, and to provide support for research and education in Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi in honor of the memory of Sifu Kuo Lien Ying, who brought Guang Ping to the United States, and in commemoration of his unselfish sharing of his many skills.
Membership Renewal Reminder
The New Year is on it’s way and that means it’s almost time to renew your membership.
Can’t wait to renew?
Visit the website at www.guangpingyang.org to renew or sign up. The Association has the ability to accept payment for member-ship online!
Printed renewal forms and checks should be sent to the member-ship coordinator at:
Julie Li c/o Peter Kwok’s Kung-Fu Academy
207 Kinderkamack Road Emerson, NJ 07630
Make checks payable to: Guang Ping Yang T’ai Chi Association.
Remember, new memberships are welcome anytime during the year. But why wait until later? Encourage your students to sign up now!
Membership benefits include discount on the yearly conference fees, this newsletter and being part of an organization that loves to share.