What Time is it Really? Earth Element and Stomach Meridian!

     Have you ever wondered What Time of Day it is, Really?!

Now with a quick glance you can see which Element is at its Peak, and which Meridian is the center of focus.

The Time of Day Clock

You can find it and other items for the Elements at:  https://www.redbubble.com/people/grnz  

Click on “Energy World”, and scroll down to “clocks”

 

Family Talents expand possibilities for all who share the passion for Art and the use of Intention

Having very talented artists in our family who combine their talents in collaborative ways, my son, MacKenzie Greenwell, who is a tap dancer and his wife, Emily Benjamin, an artist, began a special project:  Painting with Tap Shoes.  Combining my love for Healing with Intention and the Five Elements, we embarked on a special project to produce 6 paintings based on the Five Elements.  Each painting had specific musical choices and intentions infused into the process with layers of tap dancing and paint to create the final product.  These paintings have become a center of focus for my Dance Debut program as well as my Qi YINtegration program.  And now they are also available for sharing with others through special product creations on Red Bubble under “grnz”.

Dance with the Five Elements

With a pilot project in June of this year, a selection of dancers and parents participated in a 4 week program centered around the music used to create the art pieces, movements that integrated the 42 muscles, 14 meridians and 5 elements, as well as bringing the paintings onto the dance floor in different combinations.  Our results were astounding.  By placing different paintings in the center of the floor and choosing movement patterns that felt right for the music, each painting created a different dance as well as a different way of hearing the music.  Yes, you read right – even listening to the music with different colors present changed the way we were listening.  Our movements responded to this process and the dance moves completely changed as well.  More interesting was what happened when we combined several elements together.  For example, when we danced to the Metal Element using a musical selection called “Follow the Sun” by Xavier Rudd, the dancers picked out the hard beats in the music and moved in a robotic fashion.  We talked about the elements and wondered what would happen if we added the Fire Element next to the Metal Element with the same music.  The dancers tuned in to the softer melody of the music and began to dance in a more lyrical way.  All of this was of their own interpretation, but everyone reacted the same way.  It was amazing.  An eight year old in the group described the first experience as hard and cold, and felt that when the red painting was added that everything seemed to soften by being together.  This was her expression of the experience with no knowledge of the Elements or what they mean.  She didn’t know that Fire could melt Metal, but she could feel it!

The Time of Day clock created by Emily has taken a portion of the paintings from each Element and combined it into the 24 hour clock.  The Elements and the Meridians are identified by color and label.  The intention of each painting is represented in each square so that anyone tuning into the clock can have a similar experience while focusing on the time of day.  If you use the Time of Day balance from Touch for Health, it is with a quick glance that you can know which system you need to focus on for making changes to the system.  In a classroom the Time of Day wheel is easily represented through the clock and builds a reminder of the order and the flow.  This is great for Level 1 and 2 students in Touch for Health.

The Five Element Feet were created to bring the paintings into a focus for standing on.  With several goal setting foot maps created over the years, and the desire of the dancers to stand on each painting, I had to respond with some meaningful ways of bringing the power of the paintings to our activities.  The paintings can be printed on canvas, sheets, duvets or pillows to bring the power into a useful means of exploring their power.  In addition, each element was transferred into foot patterns to create a Five Element Wheel, our topic of discovery for Level 2-4 Touch for Health students and beyond.  With this Star creation students can follow the flow of the elements for both the Ko and Shen cycles, as well as stand in the spaces they need for supporting the body while doing a Color Balance.  The power of this symbol can be added to mugs, bags, books, t-shirts and more.  There is even a sticker and a postcard that can share the energy.

Bringing the textbooks to life for Specialized Kinesiology provides more meaning to the use of the techniques in our every day.   For dancers and athletes who want a simple way to energize and support the body, adding some infused color to the program can change everything.  Have a look at the project, check out the products that might help you with your balancing, and enjoy the wonderful richness that happens when collaborating talents get together.