We have one more adult eurythmy class this year with our visiting eurythmist, Audun Smit. The class is open to all this Friday at 9am in the EHCC Fellowship Hall. The following thoughts on eurythmy are offered by one of our founding parents and teachers, and were originally published in our weekly school newsletter on March 1, 2016.
Eurythmy- Nurture Your Own Heart and Soul
One of the most helpful things we can do for our children is to nurture our own hearts and souls. When, I’m calmer, my children are calmer. When I’m content, my children are content. Children reflect much of what they experience with the adults around them. And for the next 3 weeks we now have an incredible opportunity to nurture ourselves right here at Madrona- in a free adult eurythmy class.
The word eurythmy stems from the Greek roots for beautiful or harmonious rhythm. A dictionary may define eurythmy as a system of harmonious body movement to the rhythm of spoken words. But it is much more. Eurythmy is an art form created by Rudolf Steiner. And in a slightly modified form it can be appliedtherapeutically. Rudolf Steiner’s essential point is that eurythmy is visible speech, visible music. He described it as “art of the soul”. One can even go further and maintain that the movements of eurythmy do actually proceed out of the inner movements of the organization of man. That said, as you can see, it’s very hard to describe eurythmy in words; it really needs to be experienced.
I’m not a eurythmist, but I’ll share with you how I feel after finishing an adult eurythmy class. I feel calm, centered, and uplifted yet grounded. I feel a greater sense of connection- connection to a grander Source, to the others in the eurythmy circle, to the earth, and to myself. I feel pure joy! Wow- all in one hour! Another added bonus- it’s just plain fun!
A bit of history that you may not be aware of is that Madrona School was seeded in eurythmy (and festivals). Prior to the start of the school, we were blessed with David Michael Monasch, a eurythmist from Seattle, coming to Bainbridge every week to teach eurythmy. We experienced the gift of community literally moving together as One during eurythmy class and I believe that those years of relating in this nonverbal way helped set the foundation for a healthy school to be co-founded.
Now we’re blessed with another amazingeurythmy teacher, Audun Smit . I experience Audun’s presence as pure and clear. He exemplifies both groundedness and radiance. Before I learned his name, I found myself calling him “the Angelic Eurythmy teacher”. So even if you’re not so interested in eurythmy, it may be worth coming just to be in his presence.
I hope to see you in adult eurythmy class Friday mornings March 4, 11, 18 from 9:00-10:00. Actually I wish all parents could experience this simple, yet profound practice. After all, parenting isn’t always easy and we could all use a bit of nurturing for our own hearts and souls.
With deep gratitude,
Debby Haase
Former Madrona teacher of Grades 1-8
Parent of two Madrona graduates
Co-founder of Madrona
