Chapter 30: Retrospective

Five years later, Fara Dangerfield found herself standing in the wings of a television studio at BBC Broadcasting House.

“Good evening and welcome to ‘Retrospective’, a chance to look back at defining moments in recent history with me, Victoria Fleming.” The presenter, reading from her autocue, smiled into the unblinking eye of the television camera. “Tonight we will be talking with Fara Dangerfield, one of the trainees in the very first JUMIST sessions, about how that event laid the foundations for so much development of women’s man-management skills in the last five years. Ladies, Ms Fara Dangerfield.”

The studio audience applauded as Fara walked confidently onto the studio set and sat down beside Victoria. Resplendent in a long black silk qipao with red piping on the hems and the fastenings, she was completely relaxed as she greeted her interviewer.

“Fara, for those that don’t know - and I’m sure there can’t be many - tell about the start of the JUMIST programme and Kòngzhì Rén.”

“Well, Victoria, I’m not sure about the political background and the whys and wherefores but for me it was a chance to fill in a gap in my understanding of how to live in the society we are building. It turned out that this method, this art, devised thirteen hundred years ago, has real application in the modern world.”

“I believe you taught yourself Mandarin in order to study it?”

“Well, yes, but don’t let that put viewers off! Since I first started, most of the key works have been translated into English. When I signed up for the course, though, I knew nothing of the language, Kòngzhì Rén, or Chinese culture apart from what I picked up at my local take-away.”

Victoria smiled. “But now you’ve reached the highest level possible. Your black qipao signifies that I believe? And you were the first western woman to gain that distinction?”

“Well, it’s true that I have managed to win the black qipao but that’s not the highest possible level. There are grades above this; five dragon grades. I don’t think you can ever stop learning and that’s something you can’t get men to do for you, no matter how hard you try! Kòngzhì Rén teaches you always to be looking to increase your skills. That’s why it has been such a powerful force for developing young women in this country. That first course set me well on the way. It was so hard at first. I never thought I would get to grips with it. I’d managed to pass the first three grades during the initial training but after then I had to build my own skills. Luckily the Government funded access to an expert mentor to help me learn and to arrange for examinations at the various levels. It’s all part of the JUMIST plan now.”

“Were you surprised how quickly it caught on?”

“No, not really. I’d felt there was a need for something like this and it seems that lots of other people agree. It’s very practical and easy to apply but it makes you think about how you do things too. With diligence and practice and good tuition your skill builds until it becomes easy, almost second nature. You apply the methods instinctively but behind that you are always thinking, always learning. I think the thing that has really encouraged me has been how quickly the network of clubs and study groups grew up once New Opportunity really got behind it and of course, the way in which Sunrise has contributed their expertise too.”

Victoria bristled at the mention of a commercial concern, sensitive as ever about advertising on the BBC but she knew she had to give Fara the opportunity for her own plug. “You’ve written about your experience, I believe.”

“Well, yes. I don’t have anything like the understanding of Kòngzhì Rén that my mentor, Mary Tang or the wonderful exponents of the art in China have but I thought it would be useful to have a work for the general reader. Something that might inspire other girls to get involved in the programme in the same way that I did and my other colleagues did too. It’s called ‘Four Paths, Four Pressures, One Goal’ - I’ve tried to make it a bit of an introduction to the method as well as talking about my own experiences.”

At home, Fara’s mother watched approvingly as the interview continued. She felt Fara deserved the attention for all the hard work she had put in. It hadn’t been easy writing the book while holding down her full time job at the Ministry for Inward Investment. “Miss Fara’s made a big success of this Kòngzhì Rén thing, hasn’t she?” her houseboy asked as he brought Phyllis the coffee she had asked for.