My Personal Journey in Becoming a Kinesiologist
Amy Choi, Hong Kong, Oct. 2009
When The Journey Began
I first learnt Touch for Health (TFH) and Educational Kinesiology (Edu-K) from a Hawaiian instructor Zale Giffin, who came to Hong Kong to deliver two introductory level workshops back in 1997. I became so interested in the subjects that I flew to the U.S. to study from two great teachers in the field, namely John Thie, D.C. and Carla Hannaford, Ph.D., who impressed me not only through the knowledge and skills they had, but also by their being the living manifestation of the work they taught. In early 1998, together with my husband and business partner Conrad Ho, we started a company to promote and teach Kinesiology. In 1998 and 1999, I got my licenses to become a registered TFH and Brain Gym� Instructor.
Thanks to Conrad, my clients, my kinesiology teachers, my two sons, staff, associates and myself. With their continued support, the company has existed, sustained and grew up till now. We have been able to facilitate health and learning in myself and others through the workshops we sponsored and taught; the books we translated and published; and the one-to-one balancing sessions that we did.
The Journey Continues
Through the encouragement of my teachers, friends and mentors, namely Carla Hannaford, Glenys Leadbeater and Toni Lilley, I slowly assumed new roles called “faculty” in two international organizations. They are International Kinesiology College which promotes TFH, and Educational Kinesiology Foundation which spreads Edu-K. Under these two roles, I have then been able to teach these subjects at a more advanced level not only in Hong Kong, where I am based, but also in mainland China and other places. I attended international faculty meetings in different countries, thus being able to learn from kinesiologists from all over the world. As I met these people, I realized that many have been in a similar journey as mine; and some have been in it for so long that their hair has turned grey and white. I felt so blessed to be able to cross life paths with all these predecessors and dedicated people.
The Creative World of Kinesiology
The more I experience, discover and meet people in this journey, the more I realize that this work is all about facilitating self-awareness, balance and creativity in ourselves and in others. Kinesiology balancing is the tool I use and I offer it through my roles and capacities as a teacher, an entrepreneur and business owner, a translator, a balance facilitator. Because kinesiology is such a new subject and there are many undiscovered area in the development of the knowledge and techniques, I can be very creative in manifesting who I am as a person, through the pathway of becoming a kinesiologist AND at the same time, making a living.
To the point of creativity, I would like to mention one of the interesting people whom I met and have given me great inspirations in recent years. She is Susanne Degendorfer, one of the founders of Institut für Angewandte Kinesiologie (IAK) in Germany. She and her professional team have created such a powerful learning community through running their kinesiology institute for many years. They are some of the people who, so to speak, “create the space” and “hold it together” for the growth of kinesiology and great masters of the work.
I had the honour to visit and teach at their institute this year and in the last two years to share some of the techniques and discoveries that Conrad & I have developed in integrating Qigong, play and kinesiology. While I was being nurtured in their space, the green and clean environment of the Black Forest and the learning community they had attracted, I started to understand how it was possible for TFH, Edu-K and other specialized kinesiologies to grow in the cradles of such schools in Europe and elsewhere in the world.
Celebration of the 10th Anniversary of Edu-K in Hong Kong/China � Thank You!
Back home in Hong Kong, I found myself becoming more and more busy with the day-to-day running of my centre, as well as all the work that we are doing, developing and teaching. One recent event, however, helped me stop, think and celebrate.
Earlier this month, Conrad & I facilitated a Brain Gym� Teachers’ Practicum � the last step in the formal programme that initiated new Licensed Brain Gym� Instructors to go out into the community to teach Edu-K. This Practicum was a memorable experience for me. It marked the 10th anniversary since the first Brain Gym� Teachers’ Practicum we organized in October 1999. This year, we celebrated the “birth” of the 6th batch of Edu-K instructors in China and also the 10th anniversary with the new and some existing Brain Gym� Instructors.
The new instructors are mostly teachers, social workers, occupational and physio- therapists, child workers, social centre managers and mothers. Some are Ph.D. holders and experts in their fields. Each and every one of them represents a great potential of how Edu-K can be spread even further and deeper into our community � to facilitate balance, brain integration and ease of learning in people’s daily lives. Here, I would like to express my deep gratitude for our instructors for who they are and their support and trust in us and everybody.
Being a Master in the Journey
Now, at this very moment, I am feeling so grateful to be an explorer in this path of self-noticing and creating, co-creating with interesting people in the kinesiology field. I also look forward to meeting and co-creating with many others in this journey. I have set the intention to live the work I teach and become a healthy, coherent and integrated person.
Like what the co-creator of Edu-K, Paul Dennison Ph.D. had said in a conference recently: “This work is about creating who you are from your frontal lobes!” I invite you to join me in this creative journey.
