I am used to doing Move With Balance® in Hawaii, used to teaching elders in Hawaii and did for 23 years. Hawaii is where I actually created Move With Balance® working on a daily basis with so many different elders in so many different settings. I had to learn to adapt and think and move on my feet. I had to learn to “move with balance.
Now I am in Ecuador and you can imagine the change and adaptations. We have been going to Hogar Cristro Rey, an assisted living facility in Cuenca, actually in an historic old building with beautiful courtyards.
It’s like being outside in a courtyard—light and beautiful, and a little cold. Notice the coats. I did some of the simple movements and Bill played his beautiful music. I am not used to so many people in a class, and I am used to “mentors” helping me with the elders.
I had a university student come and be a translator. He also helped assist the elders with the movements. His English isn’t that great and my Spanish isn’t that great, but it was a very successful class. An excellent venue for us to learn each other’s languages. I have gotten more university students to help as “mentors”. Mostly, the elders just have to imitate me as they do the movements, but learning information behind the movements makes it more fun for them. The staff also helped with the movements and the language.
The challenge is to adapt the program to their abilities and needs and to work with the translator. Bill and I work great together and know each other’s ways. Bill’s music is so universal that this will help pull it all together. So really, it’s like when I first started on Maui, adapting the program to the Maui elders and making me happy doing it. Now we adapt to the Ecuadorian elders and make Bill and me happy doing it.
