Faulk TaiChi

Learn the beautiful, flowing movements for health and relaxation.

Engage in the Changes of Autumn

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Autumn Equinox today — equal hours of daylight and darkness. Balance in nature. We are in a turning point of seasons, late summer into autumn.

What images come to mind when you think of autumn? Green leaves turning to golden yellow, burnt orange, vivid red. Excitement in the air as you move with the crowd, winding your way to the Saturday afternoon college football game. Walking on a cool, crisp evening by the lake in a light windbreaker jacket.

A season of visible change — hours of daylight are decreasing. Thoughts drift to the fact that winter is not far away. For children, and in triggered memory for adults, it’s a new school year. Vacations are over. We are back to school, back to work.

Try experiencing autumn anew this year, in a very mindful way. Engage your senses. Notice the yellows, reds and oranges on the tree leaves. Watch the precision of the flying long-necked geese, in their perfect V-formation, honking loudly along the way. Stop to glance at the children in the school playground, running, laughing, playing with their friends. Note the cloudy days when the raindrops turn into little ice crystals. And note the first evening when goosebumps pop up on your forearms. That extra soft blanket feels so good for sleeping. It is so obvious now that the shadows of the trees lengthen. We see more shadows everywhere.

Hear the humming of harvesting machines in the fields along the country roads. Farmers are picking the field corn and harvesting soybeans in their combines. Locusts buzz loudly — no missing their presence in the city and farms alike.

Bite into a honey crisp or golden delicious apple, with a crunch on each bite. How good is the seasonal squash, accented with brown sugar and a touch of better. My mouth waters just thinking about it.

The crisp, cool air of the season is so invigorating. It is a great time to take deep breaths, fill your lungs with refreshing, clean air. You feel alive. You are in the moment, enjoying the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of autumn.

Use all your senses and enjoy!

(Updated from an article I previously wrote, with great input from my mother, reflecting on what she liked about autumn.)

Changing the Way You Look at Things

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A few days ago I posted a quote on my FAULK TAI CHI Facebook page, from Wayne W. Dyer, a prolific writer and inspirational speaker:

When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”

The reach was far and readers liked it. It makes sense to me that people do want to broaden their perspectives, think more creatively or embrace change. How do we do that?

Faulk Tai Chi demonstration

One of my Tai Chi students had a profound experience of this change, which I want to share. She is a new student, in her fourth month of weekly Tai Chi class with me.  She is motivated to learn and is inquisitive. Early on she asked, “Does my arm go here? Should I try to relax my fingers?,” wanting to follow and do the moves ‘correctly’.

“The most important thing is to relax and focus on is where your weight is. The benefit of Tai Chi comes from intentionally shifting your weight in a very methodical way,” I explain to her and the class.

“Tai Chi and QiGong are about ‘allowing’ rather than ‘trying hard’. Letting go, relaxing can be a challenge in our busy lives. But for this hour, we have no ‘to do’s’ and no ‘shoulds’,” I add.

After class one day, this student came up to me.

“I’m so excited and  just have to tell you something,” she said. “I always thought of  energy as something I use to get me through my days and when it’s low, I know I need more sleep. I’ve never consciously felt it and frankly I haven’t, before now, thought about it intentionally. But with Tai Chi I’ve felt warmth in my hands and a few ‘a-ha’s’ when I start to relax. I was out walking my dog last night and I felt centered and thought to myself, I’m moving my energy. I’m feeling my energy!”

She has shifted how she looks at energy and now her energy has changed. Wonderful!

Am I Breathing?

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Yesterday in Tai Chi class, one student remarked that she wasn’t breathing. No, it wasn’t an emergency; it wasn’t a health crisis.  It was  an “aha”, a moment of awareness.

Our movements in class are slow and fluid. We learn to feel and know where are weight is — it is 50/50, equal weight on each leg, 100/0 when we walk, or 70/30, when we move into a bow and arrow stance. Many of us are not aware of how we stand, sit or walk, or where our weight is at any point of time. I help students learn and practice weight-shifting, becoming aware of where our weight is at any point in time. That awareness helps our balance, stability and alignment.

While we practice moves that shift weight, I mention breathing, sometimes in unison as a class and sometimes just breathing naturally, at our own pace. We focus on placing our heel down, then the sole of the foot, then shifting weight onto that leg, all before we even think about picking up the other leg to take a step forward. Sometimes, our mind is so focused on the individual movement, we forget to breathe. We hold our breath.

I often remind students, in the midst of moving, to breathe, just breathe naturally. With practice and increased awareness of our breathing, we learn to move and breathe together, in a very natural way.

Fortunately, breathing is an automatic function in our daily life. Good thing, because most of us would be in big trouble if it weren’t.  However, we can increase the quality of our breathing, and therefore the quality of energy flow throughout our bodies with awareness. With practice. It is a wonderful time of year to be outside, taking a walk, riding a bike, watching a beautiful sunset. Next time you time a little time for yourself, take that walk, with awareness of your breathing.  Count your breaths, coordinate your breaths with each step or just celebrate the fact that you are breathing, moving and doing something very healthy for your body and mind.