I was born in Belgium and my love of dancing brought me to England in the 70’s to train as a professional ballet dancer (Arts Education School, Tring, Herts) and musical actress (Golden Theatre School, Barbican). I am married and we have two wonderful sons.
This dancing experience has influenced my entire life as I have always looked for movement in art. Although I have always been intrigued about learning t’ai chi, the opportunity took a long time to show itself because one does not go and find t’ai chi, it finds you! Hence for many years I carried on my fitness programme through various activities (yoga, sports), this until 2009 when we moved to a very small village in West Oxfordshire.
“The teacher leads you to the gate, but only you can pass through it”.
(an ancient taoist expression)
The simplest way I can describe my experience of learning t’ai chi is to symbolise it into ‘Golden Gates’: The first Golden Gate that opened to me was discovering t’ai chi in 2009 when our village took part in weekly lessons outside in the garden connecting its magical purity with nature that is all around us. Tom Gold-Blyth (from the Golden Flower International School) agreed to come from Oxford to teach us; he began t’ai chi as a student of Gerda (Pytt) Geddes who had introduced t’ai chi to the UK. The second Golden Gate opened 3 years later when Tom put his faith in my becoming an instructor and holding my own classes in a nearby village. The third opened Golden Gate was my opportunity to train towards taking The Test so that I could become a Golden Flower Instructor. Passing The Test in 2014 lead me through the fourth Golden Gate. Passing through these gates taught me that when adventure comes, it is an invitation to open the way to what is new, an invitation to going on a journey towards priceless treasures. Indeed, through the wonderful art of t’ai chi and the support of the Golden Flower School I learn every day how to find quietness, how to manage my realities, how to enjoy life, how to simply be myself.
I have the huge privilege of training with our Masters San Gee Tam and his wife Annukka, either in America where they live, or when they visit Europe. Every time I am immensely inspired by their teachings not only in the t’ai chi curriculum but also in all aspects of life. In addition, the Golden Flower School in the UK meet up to train, practise and update our knowledge and skills.
In my classes I enjoy focusing on keeping fit and healthy, getting more supple and finding stronger balance as well as encouraging self-cultivation through inner peace and enlightenment, all to encourage us to naturally move toward radiant health. Hence there is little focus on self-defence and fighting techniques although we do learn certain ‘applications’ to make sure we understand the technique of a particular move. Our syllabus includes the Yang style Forms, Bagua, Pushing Hands, Qigong and various forms of meditation including the all important Be Here Process.
I am registered with the Tai Chi Union of Great Britain (T.C.U.G.B.)