She Was Crying in the Corner

She was crying in the corner when I arrived at the Studio.

A young 21yo Gen-Zenner - and a bit of an outlier as a BodyChance trainee – her first lesson with me ended up with her standing on a table in the middle of the room.

tbh – I can’t remember how we got to that situation, but this memory remains. 

She was that kind of person.

And now she was huddled up in a corner, in deep distress, right in the middle of Tommy’s class at the Meguro studio in Tokyo.

Tommy was that kind of teacher.

My trainees took it in their stride. After all, as one said to me later, it was Tommy’s class – this kind of thing happens a lot. Tommy can draw people into personal spaces they infrequently adventure. But with Tommy, they feel they have a Guide who will accompany them anywhere; a Guide who accepts any kind of story, any kind of reaction or request. 

The freedom to express is palatable.

Tommy, on his side, developed a unique alternate language for Alexander’s Discovery. Instead of talking about inhibition, Tommy talks about “withholding consent”. More than any other teacher I know, Tommy can effortlessly bridge the gulf that often separates “physical postural advice” and “profound existentialism.” The deeply psychological comes easily in Tommy’s classes, and yet he manages to keep it respectfully within the boundaries of “Alexander work”. Incredible.

So I wondered what would happen when Tommy went virtual…?

For nearly two decades, Tommy has been an Associate Director of BodyChance, coming to Japan every year for 2 weeks to work with our 100+ trainees (less these days). As his March 2020 visit was approaching, so was COVID-19. As usual, Tommy was ahead of the curve – and me – and insisted on staying home.

BodyChance went virtual - Tommy came to Japan.

Tommy said – during his first class – “I haven’t done this before.” That was March 2020. Now it is almost May 2021, and Tommy has already clocked up hundreds of hours teaching online.

And my trainees still cry. 

My trainees still go on unexpected personal adventures – ZOOM or no ZOOM. Which means it will be exciting to hear Tommy share what he has learnt over the past year teaching online; and what he advises you to do.

Anyone – teacher or not – who learns or communicates through ZOOM will be enriched by the deep experience and knowledge offered by six renowned Masters of their art at BodyChance’s Symposium in May.

Tommy called his Symposium contribution “Emergence”, and you can wonder what you are emerging from? Read more of his presentation - and those of myself, Cathy Madden, Greg Holdaway, Lucia Walker and Sarah Barker – by clicking on the link below:

https://bodychance.mykajabi.com/how-to-teach-alexander-online