Rather than telling them what it is...
I usually ask them if I could show them some simple exercises and guided meditations they could do themselves, that would help their focus, school work, alleviate pain, improve their relationships, and heal their body as well as helping others heal - would they be interested?
If they are, I'd relate it to Tai Chi (since they're probably already familiar with that), and talk about how they are both good for the body, and that Tai Chi's root is as a martial art, where Qigong's is healing.
I'd talk about how everything being made up of Qi, and that there isn't anything solid about them - If they looked with better and better microscopes, they'd see it's all just energy, in a certain space, time, and speed.
Qi has an energy and message component to it, and the reason your body is how it is and isn't. Sometimes the message can get mixed up or damaged through inappropriate medicine, the weather, emotions, etc. and gets out of balance. Spring Forest Qigong assists healing at that energy/message level, bringing the body back into balance through simple movements, visualizations, breathing, sounds, and the mind.
Would you like me to show you a simple exercise that in one hour, healed my wife's of 4 years of permanent disability?
Much Love,
Shawn
