Hi,
I saw this image (scroll down) the other day and an important principle, featured in several of the martial arts that inform FCMA, sprang to mind. Occupying the centre, dynamically with another, seems at the heart of therapy and fluctuations/ruptures/impasses to this are inevitable, natural and therefore to be expected.
In keeping with this theme (staying safe in the centre), Neil and I are working on the latest evolution of our 2-day workshop.
We'll be in Ireland on the 12th and 13th of December 2024 and are reducing some of the theory content drawn from our papers (which are free for everyone to read) so we can focus on a more experiential encounter with radically embodied compassion.
As we're reducing content to its core, we're freeing up more time to focus on elements such as:-
1. Modified pad drills (as both the recipient and feeder of energy)
2. Physical boundaries and how this fits with notions of consent giving
3. Kiai/Kihap as forms of issuing fierceness in the face of suffering
4. Basic footwork drills drawn from Western Boxing
5. The initial section of The Eye of the Storm FCMA first kata/form
6. Group distancing drills (tricky but good fun)
7. Flanking and remaining in engagement distance
All of this might look somewhat confusing, given it's out of context but this is a taste of some of the ideas we're currently working through, as FCMA/radically embodied compassion continues to evolve.
Stay safe, train hard and look for peace,
Syd and Neil
