The Dragon's Head Blog: Autumn Moon Banquet Costa Rica 2015: A night to remember

We celebrated this banquet on Saturday, October 17th, 2015. As usual, the final preparations began in the afternoon with people helping to set up and decorate after sharing lunch together. Around 70 guests started gathering at 5.30pm, including many special guests like several doctors who have been recommending us to their patients, and the board members of ADEP, a society for retired teachers that is also very supportive in our Tibás satellite.

The programme included sharing of different traditional legends like Chang-E, the Jade Rabbit, Wu Gang and the cherry bay tree and the Mooncake legend, as part of the cultural exchange and to exemplify the virtues of sacrifice, dedication and sense of shame, as well as the consequences of not practicing them.

We also shared images of the many activities we have in the club to give the guests a better understanding of who we are: demonstrations, talks, International Programmes, helping families in need, Christmas parties and more. The pictures of all of those events had something in common: many photos of people enjoying food while partaking in those activities!

Three members of the club gave their health testimonials: Maria Elena Zamora, a lady with fibromyalgia who was able to drop several pain and sleeping medications with her practice, Mayra López, who has many challenges including back, knee and ankle problems as well as fibromyalgia, who shared, with tears of joy and relief, that when she had asked her sons what her biggest change had been since she started practicing, the answer was that before Taoist Tai Chi they had never seen her smile. The last testimonial was a part of Peter Turner’s story of being immobilized after a car accident and regaining his life through the arts, a testimonial that many newcomers hadn’t heard before.

The event ended with entertainment by DJ González, a member with quite an extraordinary voice, the much anticipated desserts and, of course, the raffle! Many members donated different gifts that made the winners very happy. Luckily, at least one person of each table won! After the guests had left, it was the seniors who stayed and helped to wash the dishes with a great smile, while another dozen members that had been working during the banquet, other than table carers, meters, greeters and seaters had a chance to relax and share food (and wine) together.

A definite success and good training opportunity for many members in preparation for our 20th Anniversary Celebration coming up in April 2016.