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Listening

January 21, 2017 By Arlene Faulk

Faulk Tai Chi

Is listening becoming a lost art?

Generally, we think of listening with our ears. Does that sound like a strange statement? Think about it. More and more conversations are transacted via email or text or twitter. We may occasionally listen to a live speaker but many of us rely on reading sound bites or short news stores on our computer or phone. I don’t think we can really listen through the written word. Nuances, inflections, tone are difficult to pick up on a screen and maybe more likely to be misinterpreted.

PDX Chinese Gardens

Really listening and hearing another person requires focus and being open, open to what he or she has to say. There is another aspect of listening that is as important as readiness to hear spoken words – listening to our bodies. Many years ago I learned an important lesson from an exercise instructor in New York City. “Your body doesn’t lie,” she announced in class one day. I thought and thought about that. Dealing with some severe physical challenges at the time, I realized that I used my mind to say “It’s not so bad,” “I can get through this” I wasn’t really listening to my body because I didn’t really know how to do it. When I started to listen, through work with a professional acupuncturist, I started to take time out for rest, started a Tai Chi class. Tai Chi helps me quiet my chattering mind, empty out the thoughts, be in the moment, be a better listener.

It’s only when we can focus on the moment that we can quiet our mind and open up to listen, to our body and I also believe, to words of other people. It takes openness to listen, from an open mind that is willing and ready to listen.

If you are like me, it may be helpful to think what you might do, what you might let go of, to be in the moment, to really listen. What is your body telling you? How might you really listen and hear what someone else is saying out loud to you? You may find that listening in conversation, being open to others is related to how your body feels.

Filed Under: Energy, Listening to our Body, Mindfulness, Paying Attention, Tai Chi, Tai Chi Classes Tagged With: body and mind connection, openness, quiet the mind, the moment

Sharing Energy

June 2, 2015 By Arlene Faulk

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.

2015 Workshop Enso 3

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.

workshop
2015 Workshop Enso 2

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.

Filed Under: Arlene Faulk, Breathwork, Energy, Inner Balance, Mindfulness, Qi Gong, Tai Chi, Tai Chi Events, Tan Tien Tagged With: openness, Sharing energy, understanding energy, workshop

“Never Cease to Learn”

June 30, 2012 By Arlene Faulk

More reflections from my Tai Chi workshop in Olive Branch, Mississippi:

“Anyone who teaches may never cease to learn,” Dr. Paul Lam said in the midst of the week. At that time, I was loving being a student, soaking in the knowledge and experience the teachers were sharing. My major responsibility was to be attentive, to be an eager student. Not a teacher.

Learning new things has and continues to be very appealing to me. The old adage that the more you know, the more you know what you don’t know rings truer every year. And, in this workshop I wanted new insights about the principles of Tai Chi and I wanted to learn a new Yang style form, the 24, which I’ve wanted to learn for a number of years. I wasn’t focused on being a teacher in that moment, but Dr. Lam’s comment caused  me to stop and think. Many of us are teachers and have the honor of teaching Tai Chi, acknowledging great respect for the masters who shared their wisdom over the centuries in their families, and more recently outside of their families to the general public.

I love learning, and as a teacher, greatly enjoy learning from my students. I can honestly say that I learn something new in every class I teach. I gain insights on students’ learning, interpreting words, watching movements, all in different ways. Preparing for a class, for a private session, for a demonstration, for a workshop, requires thinking, researching, talking with other teachers — learning from a variety of sources. And the best is to watch students, listen to their questions and comments during class and sometimes before/after a class. The student’s brain cells, the body’s reaction are in motion, along with the teacher’s.

It occurs to me that students can be great teachers for the teacher and in some respects we are all teachers, even if it’s not an official title. Mothers, fathers, and other family members are teachers; children teach their parents and guardians; office managers teach us; friends teach us.

The key, I think, to be a good teacher is to have an open mind, an attitude of compassion and learning. Teachers may have experience, knowledge and skills to impart, but it’s not a one-way street. The students in our classes, in our homes, on the basketball court, in the retirement homes all have something to teach us. Let us be willing to consider many who intersect in our lives as teachers and “never cease to learn.”

Filed Under: Listening to our Body, Tai Chi Classes Tagged With: compassion, listening, openness, teachers

Arlene Faulk

Arlene Faulk

After a years-long struggle to understand and conceal debilitating symptoms while I ascended the corporate ladder, I found comfort and healing through Tai Chi and Chinese Medicine.

My memoir, Walking on Pins and Needles, is the story about the power to control our lives and move in the direction of possibility. Read more...

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FROM TAI CHI STUDENTS

Tai Chi makes me feel calm, yet energized. Because of my practice, the small irritants of life affect me less.

Tai Chi student

I had back surgery, was in pain and had little range of motion. Tai Chi practice at Heartwood has helped me increase flexibility, my range of motion and my overall stamina.

Tai Chi student

Arlene teaches the Tai Chi form in such a gentle and connected way that many movements now feel utterly natural and healing.

Tai Chi student

I've even shared some of the exercises with my bike club to help reduce injuries. They really work!

Tai Chi student

I've always been a klutz and have regularly lost my balance and fallen when walking outside. Arlene taught me how to stand and walk properly through Tai Chi. I really can't believe it: I haven't fallen in four years since I've been taking Tai Chi with Arlene!

Tai Chi student

I love Arlene's Tai Chi classes. She helps us understand not only what we're doing, but also why we're doing it. That really helps me take what I learn in class and apply it to my daily life.

Tai Chi student

I'm really inspired by what Tai Chi has done for Arlene. She is a great teacher, who is calm and very patient. She has really helped me not to be so hard on myself.

Tai Chi student

I play golf and had a lesson after school, on the same day we had Tai Chi class. My coach commented, 'Your posture is amazing and all of the balance issues that we have been fighting for so long seem to have just taken a vacation.' I mentioned to him that I thought it was due to Tai Chi.

Tai Chi student

Tai Chi relaxes your entire body and promotes peace and proper breathing. The more I manage to breathe properly while doing any activity in my life, I generally tend to do a lot better at it. I benefited from Tai Chi because it managed to help me with my breathing skills even more.

Tai Chi student

Tai Chi really gives my body strength to put up with the pains of my breast cancer and back problems. Tai Chi is 'sneaky'. You don't think it's helping, but eventually you realize it's helping you.

Tai Chi student

For me, Tai Chi brings comfort and quiet amidst all the chaos and change.

Becky, Tai Chi student

In just a few months, the practice has become perhaps the most nurturing element in my life during COVID times, when sustaining a commitment to anything else has been challenging.

Barb, Tai Chi student

The community Tai Chi has provided has been a gift. With so much we can now do whenever we wish --- with an app, YouTube video, or streaming service --- meeting weekly (via zoom) in real time, live, to practice Tai Chi creates true community.

David, Tai Chi student

I really enjoy our time together and I've found Tai Chi a great way to "keep moving," not only during this pandemic but also as a regular practice with a wonderful integration of mind, body and spirit.

Martha, Tai Chi student

Tuning into the class and seeing familiar faces of the other students brings a nice sense of community and connection during this time of separation and isolation.

Julia, Tai Chi student

I love the walking practice because it helps me slow down and focus only on the moment.

Tai Chi student

Tai Chi has made me aware of how I’m standing and where my weight is. My balance is improving.

Tai Chi student

I hear Arlene saying to listen to my body and only do what I can do. That helps me relax.

Tai Chi student

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