New Year 2020, day 3
Find a practice to calm your mind and body.
New Year Day 3 – Calm Your Body and Mind
Celebrating 2018 Chinese New Year
A very fun afternoon celebrating Chinese New Year, Year of the Dog at Heartwood in Evanston. Look at Judy’s t-shirt and how apt, because she she is a “dog”. Four of us attending the celebration this afternoon were “dogs”.
We honored our Tai Chi and QiGong ancestors and teachers, particularly Cheng Man-ch’ing. He was instrumental in bringing Tai Chi to the U.S. and stressing relaxation in doing the form, push hands and sword. We viewed a wonderful documentary “the Professor: Tai Chi’s Journey West” about his integrating Tai Chi, poetry, calligraphy, Chinese Medicine into all his teaching.
Michelle Bobier led us in some QiGong to move our energy together and Arlene and some students demonstrated part of Cheng Man-ch’ing’s Yang style 37 Form, the basic form we learn in both Evanston and Chicago classes.
What a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon, learning about Qi, relaxing with Tai Chi, improving walking through Tai Chi and all using our bodies in motion to create a room filled with good focus and intention.
We are grateful to Cheng Man-ch’ing and remember his saying, “The most important reason to study tai chi is that when you finally reach the place where you understand what life is about you’ll have some health to enjoy it.”
Sending Qi Around the Globe
I love the idea of spreading positive Qi (energy) around the globe. We all can use some of that.
For several years, on the last Saturday in April, thousands of people gather across the world to participate in World Tai Chi and QiGong Day. 10 a.m on Saturday in each person’s time zone, groups of Tai Chi friends gather to breathe, move positive energy in concert with many others doing the same thing.
This year I had a special experience on that day, April 29, in northern Minnesota. I was part of a Wudang Tai Chi for Health and Longevity Retreat, led by Shifu Zhong Xuechao (Master Bing) from the Wudang Mountains in central China. At 9:45 a.m. we paused our class to go outside (a little chilly, but beautiful blue sky) to be on grass among beautiful trees and a still lake. We acknowledged we were part of a much larger energy movement as we slowly moved together with grace and ease, joining others whom we did not know, but felt akin to, to spread our good energy.
I asked my students in Chicago, to stop at 10 a.m. that day to breathe, do some Tai Chi moves and send some of their good energy to me across the miles. They did! It was a nice feeling of closeness, of knowing we were all doing something positive for ourselves and for people in far away countries.
Holiday Health
These December days are busy, filled with lots of “to-dos”, holiday parties, caroling, buying or thinking about what gifts to buy. . . on and on. A time of preparation, a time of increasing darkness, in the midst of lots of twinkling lights on the city streets and in store windows, in houses and condos.
Many of us are thinking ahead, living in the future and do not even think about ‘now’, about the present, about being mindful today.
This past weekend, I participated in a holiday healthcare fair, at the Osel Ling Meditation and Heartwood Healing Center, where I teach in Evanston, Il. We focused on our health, on greeting visitors with options for living better, being healthier. We greeted people, offered some mini-stress reduction through acupuncture, massage, essential oils, Reiki, Tai Chi. Is what great to help people focus on ‘now’, focus on their health during this busy time.
How wonderful to take time, right now in one of the busiest times of the year, to focus on our health. A holiday season of thinking about, planning for, and taking initiative to be healthier. When we focus on internal well-being and healing, we may just be calmer, happier, more giving and therefore, project the respect, kindness and peace to others that we hope will fill our world.
Celebrating Qi 2
I have received so many positive comments about the pictures I sent of our Celebrating Qi gathering. Thanks! The energy continues to flow.
Sharing Energy
What a wonderful afternoon on Sunday as my students and those from Enso Tai Chi shared our energy in a special workshop. Attentive, relaxed, positive, flowing, congenial, open, eager, smiling – words that come to mind to describe the feeling in the room.
It is always so energizing to gather like-minded people, in an atmosphere of learning, generating positive Qi (energy)- going inside with breathing, focusing our minds on moving energy in a relaxed, balanced way. I enjoyed the give and take, the easy flow of teaching with Chris Cinnamon, the openness of all the students, the willingness to share and allow whatever was to happen, just happen.
I shared an important comment that Grandmaster Yang Jun said in the International Tai Chi Chu’an Symposium I attended last year — “Tai Chi is about understanding energy, not about learning moves.” Yes, we need to use our minds to learn a specific move with our body, but that’s just the shell. The key is learning to get in touch, feel, move our energy with our minds. This group got it. Knew it. Felt it. At times the energy was palpable.
How special it is to take time to be, to focus our minds on our energy and end up being in the moment. How special it is to share that moment with people whom we meet for the first time, as Tai Chi friends. We share a special connection from the onset – wanting to share energy and find the moment, individually and together.