A Swinging Time

Swaying to the music

Stomp, spin, split, slap

Strut, scuff, slide, step

Sway, sweep, swing, swivel

Shake, shimmy and shuffle

WAS that an intelligence test or tongue-twisters from “Mind Our English”? Neither, they are actually line dancing steps - fascinating words to help line-dancers remember their steps. 

More than a year has passed since my article on line dancing headlined A spring in their steps was published in The Star.  Judging by the number of classes sprouting in senior citizens clubs, recreational clubs and exercise centres in the Klang Valley and other parts of the country, line dancing is here to stay! More and more seniors consider  line dancing to be a fun exercise. A feedback to evaluate its popularity is enlightening.

Seniors enjoying line dancing in Klang Senior Citizens Club   Photo: Kim Koon

 Seniors, how do you fare on the dance floor? Have you ever stopped suddenly in the middle of a dance when your brain goes blank and all you can do is blink?  Have you ever done a loud “stomp”, only to discover that others were doing a silent “scuff”? Do you find yourself facing one “wall” while the rest of the line are facing the opposite wall? You are not alone.

          “It’s okay. If I see students miss a beat, make a wrong turn or step out of line, I call it variation,” consoles one instructor. There are more than a hundred dances to learn and new dances are being choreographed every day from countries all over the world. Most instructors teach a new dance every week - how can seniors remember all the steps? I asked some friends how they reinforce their memory.

“We get together once or twice a week to go over the new as well as the old dance steps. We practise often as practice makes perfect,” says Kiew, who has been dancing for two years.  

Students of Humanitarian Club, Klang  dancing twice a week
Photo: Wynette

Keng, a retired teacher, goes over the new steps at home on the same day. “If I wait until the following week, I forget most of the steps,” she says. She practises with slow music first and then with the specific music that her instructor uses.

Others use pen and paper. “I write down the steps as the instructor teaches and then practise at home,” says Betty. She buys the cassette tapes and audio CDs from the instructor and practises with music. “With music, remembering becomes easier,” she informs.

Some rely on instructional tapes or video compact discs (VCDs) which teach the dance steps slowly and repeatedly.  Others use the computer to view VCDs and to select particular steps to perfect. 

Lim who is computer-savvy, downloads and prints step sheets from the internet. She practises with her friends, using the step sheets as guides. Some of the websites she surfs to are www. billbader.com;www.midlandmavericks.com: Currently, you can search on google by typing "name of line dance" followed by the word "line dance." To download step sheets, just type "name of line dance" followed by the words "step sheets".

 

After a year of line dancing, do seniors still have the “kick” for it? The following  are the responses of some friends.

“It keeps me on my toes. Recollecting the steps exercises my grey cells. Maybe it will help to prevent Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia,” Bee declares.

 “It’s really good for health. I’ve not gone to see a doctor since I took up line dancing,” says Fong. 

Line dancing is good for health   Photo: Wynette

 “It’s like a free slimming session for me,” says Leng, who dances four times a week. Her slender shape and youthful exuberance belie her age.  

“I’ve never had so much fun after retirement,” volunteers Kathy. “Who would have thought that we as seniors could still enjoy the songs that we sang as teenagers!” Some of the popular line dancing tunes are by Connie Francis (Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool), Elvis Presley (Graceland), Bill Haley (Rock Around The Clock) and Chubby Checker (Let’s Twist Again) and many more.

Seniors dancing to their favourite music    Photo: Kim Koon

Whither do you go from here? Is attending line dancing classes once or twice a week enough to sustain your interest? How can you make it more challenging? Here are some suggestions.

            Join Jamming, a practice session for continuous dancing that is common in Singapore and Hong Kong. Recently Wynette, an instructor, organised a jamming session in a Multipurpose Hall in Port Klang. Participants (more than 60) from different classes danced non-stop from 9 am to 2 pm. They enjoyed themselves tremendously. 

            Join a Tea Dance, continuous dancing after tea, usually from 2 pm to 7 pm. Recently, Cheong organised a tea dance in Subang. What I found commendable was that a list of the dances to be played chronologically was accessible to all participants, on that day, and also before the event. This gave them time to make choices before the music started for each dance. 

            Go for a Dinner and Dance. Dancers can dress up in their most “rugged cowboy gear” or “finest gown” to add glitter and glamour to the evening. Karin and Wynette (my line dance instructors) organise annual functions with presentations from their students from different classes. Other organisers have lucky draws or prizes for the best dance/best dressed participant, as crowd-pullers. Many organisations have line dance functions to raise funds for charity too.

 

Line dance party with the theme "Golden Memories of Yesteryears in the 1960s"

 

A line dance performance during a party  Photo: Kim Koon

          
   Try to break records. Get in line for the largest country line dance (coming soon) and have it recorded in the Malaysia Book of Records or Guinness World Records. 

            Participate in competitions. Hotel Equatorial, Bangi, is organising the 2^nd Annual “Equatorial Cup” Malaysian Line Dance Championship 2003 in September. Scooter Lee, the “Queen of Country Dance Music” will be giving a concert and Jo Thompson, “International Instructor of the Year” will be conducting classes and workshops. Interestingly, there is a special division for Seniors (ages 50 – 59 years) and Veterans (ages 60 years and above). As a participant or as an observer, you will have lots of fun.

           My friends and I joined the workshop for the Seniors. It was a most enjoyable and learning experience. We were able to meet and socialise with other line dancers from different parts of Malaysia too.

            So seniors, get on your feet, feel the beat, put that spring in your steps again and shake, sway or swivel away!

                                      

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This article was published in the Star (Malaysian newspaper) on September 15, 2003. It is edited and photos are added here.
Now in 2015, line dancing is still popular as a fun exercise in Malaysia and all over the world. Not only can we download step sheets from the Internet, we can watch and learn line dancing from posts on Google or U-tube. We just need to type the "name of the dance"  followed by the word "line dance".

Flow of Energy

Tai chi in Golden Gate Park Senior Centre, San Francisco

I watched with wonder as if in a trance!

Is it the art of self-defence or a slow-motion dance?

It is Tai chi, a gentle graceful workout

For the mind and body, an exercise to warm your heart.

Tai chi, an exercise synonymous with “hitting mosquitoes in slow motion”, fascinated me many years ago. After learning the simplified 18 and 24 Forms from an instructor, I continued to practise at home with the help of a video compact disc. 

In Malaysia, many seniors have been doing tai chi (taiji) for a very long time, either in the open field or in enclosed buildings. It is conducted in Mandarin, to slow classical music, and each Form has a specific name. I thought that it was the same in any part of the world. How wrong I was!

Recently, I visited the Golden Gate Park Senior Centre at Fulton Street in San Francisco, United States, and decided to join the tai chi classes. Arriving early in the hall, I was taken aback - about 40 participants, in four rows, were doing tai chi in total silence. Except for the squelch of shoes during pivotal turns, you could hear a pin drop! 

 

 I noticed that many of the formations were familiar. My new found friend, Mr. Hui, invited me to join in, so I sportingly complied. I felt good, moving together with the group and feeling my perspiration trickle down my brow.

 Someone called out single whip and as we did the formation, I recognized it as dan bian in Mandarin. Thereafter, I learnt other mesmerizing English equivalents. Wow, tai chi in English! 

 

Single whip : dan bian

When the sifu Garett Chinn arrived, he went around quietly, correcting certain postures and reinforcing some of the formations. After the exercise, Chinn spoke to the whole group.

“Keep your knees bent - those who cannot do this can stand straight. Relax and shift your weight to your left,” he demonstrated. “Every movement must be in balance and coordinated: when you move your left knee forward, you need to move your right wrist at the same time, in harmony. Ensure that the opposing forces work together.”

Sifu Garret Chinn leading the participants

Later, after the session, I chatted with the youthful Chinn, who also teaches in the City College of San Francisco. He has been teaching tai chi for the past 20 years. When I told him I was from Malaysia and we do tai chi with music, he was amused. 

“We do not need music,” Chinn said. The tai chi taught by Chinn was Prof. Cheng Man-ching’s Short Yang Form consisting of 37 postures. Chinn had studied under Prof. Cheng’s first disciple, Benjamin Pang-jeng Lo in 1977. The latter was a classmate of Huang Shen-shun, a Malaysian. 

I then talked to the students to get some feedback on their tai chi workouts.

Andrew Hom, 76, told me that he had tried many exercises before but none of them lasted. “With tai chi, it’s different. I continue to do it and like it very much. I exercise here two times a week and I’ve never felt better. It’s good for the mind too as I feel more alert.”

Johnny, 58, said that doing tai chi with the others was like doing it with his brothers and sisters. “To improve, you really need to practise,” he said enthusiastically. “I do it so often that sometimes I even do it in my dreams!”  

Practise makes perfect

Tony, 53, with three years of tai chi, elaborated: “I enjoy every minute of it. Initially when Chinn asked us to bend our knees, it was real torture. It looks easy but it is not. I have many friends who are great basketball players but they find it difficult to bend their knees too. Before tai chi, standing on one leg was difficult, but now I can do it very well.” 

Phyllis Greenblatt, 71, has been doing tai chi for eight years. She found it very difficult at first. “After one year, my bone density has improved and my cholesterol level has come down. After 3 years, I thought I knew it well, but I still need to be corrected in some of the Forms. Generally, I feel healthier and my balance and control have improved,” she volunteered.

Judi Tsuyuki, 64, had osteoporosis and her legs and hips were weak. “But after tai chi, I can walk for hours without any problems. I wish I had started earlier, but it is better late than never!” 

“It’s great for the elderly. Because we don’t move much, the slow exercise is suitable for us,” informed Monica Widburg, 81. “Tai chi gives me better balance. My backache is less now, and my body feels relaxed.” 

Tai chi improves balance

Johnny, 76, opined, “Tai chi keeps me young and active. A lot of doctors recommend it.”

Jenny, 75, enjoyed the socialising part. “I can exercise and meet friends at the same time,” she said cheerfully.

There was one admirable couple whose names were on everyone’s lips. This special ‘young and happy’ couple - Elsie and William Chan, 88 - have been doing tai chi continuously for five years. A picture of health and youthful exuberance, they spontaneously echoed, “We love the exercise – it is so relaxing!”

Tai chi means supreme energy (chi/ji) and after a session, one feels revitalised and full of energy.  In Malaysia, many people do tai chi and there are many forms, from 18, 24, 44 to even more than 100. Some do tai chi while holding a fan, a sword or a staff. No matter how many Forms, with or without music, tai chi will remain an evergreen exercise.

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This article was published in the Star (Malaysian newspaper) on May 5, 2005.
More photos are added here.