Last week, I had the privilege – once again – of doing some work for a local charity at Glastonbury Festival. If you’re heading that way, my advice is to go with the flow.
Esoteric Healing
Among my co-workers were an assortment of interesting characters. One of these works at the more esoteric end of the healing spectrum. We spoke about our various experiences with Tai Chi, Yoga, Bowen Technique, Alexander Technique, etc. It struck me that, whilst these each offer a different approach to achieving and maintaining well-being, they all have one thing in common.
‘Flow’?… Mumbo Jumbo?
All of these disciplines share an interest in ‘flow’. Now, to some people, delving into such areas may sound like mumbo jumbo and quackery. However, my colleague takes the healthy view that if something works for you, then why not go with it? And this is an attitude with which I wholly agree.
You can perceive this flow in purely physical terms. For example, body alignment will affect the flow of gravitational pull on the various parts of your anatomy. In response, there is a flow of muscle energy, working to balance that force. And, to control all of this, there is a flow of electronic signals between your brain, muscles and nerve cells.
Cut Yourself Loose
What some will have difficulty with are things like ‘Chi’. This is an unspecified energy but could be seen as the result of all the above. Whether we choose to see this as something mystical or purely mechanical does not particularly matter. The main thing is that we ‘go with the flow’ and allow the benefits to be realised.
In our creative work, we also need to allow this sense of fluidity. As with those healing disciplines, it is useful to have a methodology and structure within which to operate. The interesting part is then to observe the outcomes when we cut ourselves loose.
If It Feels Good – Do It
For young children, this largely happens automatically. They have not yet learned to question why or how particular movements make them feel good. But for them it is simple. If something feels good, then do it some more!
Taking the next step to using movement in an interpretive way is also of little problem to most youngsters. Why not ‘become’ a monster/space ship/historical figure/animal/feeling or even colour? That’s what children do.
Mutual Learning
As adults, we can fall into patterns of behaviour – whether emotional, physical or (dare I say?) spiritual – that block the flow. And my colleague at Glastonbury’s work as a healer tends to centre on releasing such blockages. When working with children, we need to be mindful of our own restrictions. That way, we can enable them to exceed our limitations and stretch their own boundaries.
In turn, they value our guidance and respect our experience. In this sense, there is a ‘flow’ of learning that goes in both directions. In essence, we provide the framework and the children respond with ideas. We then work together with them in order to channel these into substantial creative outcomes.
Get Moving
And the beauty is that creative flow can also reduce or alleviate health issues. The blockages that can cause physiological or psychological harm can be mitigated through creative freedom. In a nutshell – if something is blocked, get moving!
Whatever your beliefs, it’s good to go with the flow.
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‘The River’ Teaching Pack for Key Stage 2 Dance
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