C mmunity Happenings GENEVA ROCK SHOP CELEBRATES 20TH ANNIVERSARY Geneva, IL – Join in a raffle for a large amethyst cathedral and a sterling silver sacred geometry pendant when Geneva’s rock shop and nature spirit center, Crystal Life Technology, begins a yearlong 20th anniversary celebration. Anniversary activities include monthly raffles and special 20%-off sales. The official rededication takes place at Crystal Life Technology, 121 S. Third Street, Geneva, IL 60134, on Saturday, June 6, at 10 am. Local dignitaries, led by Geneva Mayor Kevin Burns, will be on hand for the event. There will be gifts, refreshments and a ribbon cutting. Crystal Life began in 1995, when owner Atala Dorothy Toy left her job at the United Nations Development Programme in New York City. Atala spent the next ten years taking Crystal Life on the road, traveling the USA on the body, mind, and spirit show circuit. Atala expanded her offerings to include not only energy jewelry but also three books on consciousness - We Are Not Alone; Nature Spirits, Spirit Guides and Ghosts; and Nature Spirits in American Trees, and hundreds of nature spirit photographs and cards. All these ways to connect to nature for healthy living are available at Crystal Life. Buddhist prayer beads, gemstone jewelry, and hundreds of specimens from many cultures round out the list of products available at the Crystal Life store in Geneva. A knowledgeable staff is on hand to answer any questions. For more information, contact Tracy Paddy at (630)400-3543 or media-crystal-life@msn.com.
“The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.” Pablo Picasso
6 Conscious Community - April 2015
Have Some Tai Ch’i with Your Chai Tea? Why Tai Ch’i & Qigong? The Qigong study-tour to Baoding, China in 1993 was a lifealtering experience for me. Our group of eleven consisted of mostly acupressure teachers from all over the US. We had the privilege of studying with Master Wang Jue Ming, a man who had been imprisoned for seventeen years during the Cultural Revolution for his Qigong healing abilities. Our first experience was with a man who had suffered a stroke and was paralyzed on one side of his body. Dr. Wang worked on him by projecting Qi (energy) with his hands at a distance from the man’s body. A few minutes later, Dr. Wong stopped and asked the man to move. He had gained some movement in the first session. Each day Dr. Wong projected Qi to him; by the end of the week, he was walking on his own. We also saw patients’ tumors shrink and, as a group, found that many of our own imbalances improved. Dr. Wong encouraged us to practice what we had learned on a daily basis. He said to meditate at least twenty minutes a day. Qi, pronounced ‘chee,’ means energy. Gong means skill or mastery. Tai Ch’i is a branch of Qigong and is meditation in motion. We learn to use Qi instead of our muscles. Research shows that Qigong can be used to help arthritis, heart disease, Parkinson’s, anxiety, depression and cancer. I have wondered why Qigong and Tai Chi are not practiced more in in the United States. Maybe it sounds too foreign, but no more than Chai Tea! It does take some dedication, ideally, a daily practice to derive the benefits. Would you like to experience Qigong and Tai Ch’i? Come out to the 17th Annual World Tai Chi and Qigong Day on Saturday, April 25. We will be hosting at the Theosophical Society in America, 1926 North Main Street, Wheaton, IL 60187. This is a FREE event. I hope you can join us. I am off to have some Chai Tea with my Tai Ch’i! Renee Somer Ryan, co-director of the Lightheart Center in Winfield, IL, has practiced the healing arts for 30 years and has studied Qigong and Tai Ch’i in the United States, China, and Korea. She can be reached at 630-260-1084, email: wuway@juno.com