We don't know which club member wrote the following. All we received was a typed copy with no
author information. So if YOU are A. Nonymous, please let us know so we can give you proper
credit. And thanks for this much-needed article!

STATE OF THE GYMNASIUM
By A. Nonymous

On a number of occasions the MBS board has touched on the subject of new members.
One of our goals has always been trying to find new and interesting ways to engage new
members in the activities of the club and help them to feel like they belong.

One thing we have discovered is that there is a certain perception among new members
that there is a good deal of “cliquishness” within the organization. It’s sort of like a junior
high school dance. Boys on one side of the gymnasium and girls on the other, and never
the twain shall meet. I realize that this statement pre-dates the modern conveniences that
allow today’s junior high students to send all manner of pictures and messages to each
other that end up on Facebook or Youtube, but I think you get the picture.

This belief that there are cliques within the club is not completely unfounded. I don’t believe
for a minute that there is any effort on anyone’s part to exclude new members in any way.
Rather, there is a common familiarity amongst the veteran members that stems from many
years of association and camaraderie. This is to be expected from people who are joined by
a common interest, that being the art of Bonsai. Even more so for the members who have
been around since the beginning of the MBS.

This brings us back to the beginning of this story about the board of directors, both current
and previous incarnations, working to find new and interesting ways to engage new
members, while at the same time holding the interest of those who have already “seen it
all.” Bonsai Basics, novice workshops and visiting master workshops are all designed to
bring the beginner and the old hand together to share ideas, techniques, and experiences.

Another of the more popular methods has been the “round robin” programs that allow both
advanced and novice level members to participate in the various styles and aspects of
Bonsai creation, working together as teams to produce an end result that is technically
correct and pleasing to the eye.

In closing, our new president Ken Ellis is asking that we work toward encouraging all of our
members to become more engaged in the activities of the Minnesota Bonsai Society. New
members should never be afraid to approach the veterans and ask questions, seek advice
or just shoot the breeze. You will soon find that most, if not all, are more than willing to
share their experience and knowledge, and in fact are often anxious to do so. To our
veteran members, I ask that you continue to share your knowledge, be willing to help out at
the workshops, basics, and novice classes and maybe bring in a tree from time to time to
show off and answer technical and/or aesthetic questions about it. There is no doubt we
can all benefit from each other’s input.

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Japanese Ume (Prunus Mume),
double white and fragrant, is a
reliable January-February bloomer
in the coldroom.