…and the “kung” in “kung fu”. They both mean work. In full, qi gong translates to energy work, and kung fu refers to skill developed through hard work.
Is all this talk about work depressing? OK, let us talk about yoga. One of the coolest rules I ever heard was, “Skip one day of practice, lose two days of progress.” I like it because it is neither prescriptive nor judgmental. It just says how things work. Now we can choose our fate.
And it is a sobering rule. Forgiving in that it does not say we cannot skip a day, but scary with the implications of doing so. Hopefully we draw the right lesson: do not feel obligated to stretch, stretch because it takes us to a better place, only if we stretch.
Good news…
Yesterday, Bob was kind enough to say he hoped I was getting something out of all the free instruction I was doing. I reassured him that I was.
- As Master Chen promised, I was getting in my practice; I rarely practice alone;
- student questions often send me back to my origins, videos and books produced by Master Chen. Even Zoom classes when offered. I often discover details missed the first time around;
- I get to teach. I love teaching, which I define as finding a way for someone else to learn to do something they cannot do–not always easy! Almost a puzzle, requiring understanding the student, their actions, and of course the skill being taught;
- sometimes I help people. Very rewarding;
- I get to be around fascinating people. Tai chi attracts a good crowd;
- hey, maybe someday I can make some bucks off teaching.
I had no idea that list would be so long when I started it. I am sure I could add more. The only point I wanted to make was the first one: because I teach, I get in my practice. A lot of practice, perhaps six seven solid hours a week. And tai chi does the rest.
- My mood is better, because of hundreds of hours on the boardwalk in all kinds of weather with all kinds of great people;
- my temperament is calmer. Not sure why, but I suspect tai chi gets the credit. I do know that more intense qi gong exercises produce an immediate, profound quieting of my stress engine;
- I am fitter, more agile, stronger, and a few pounds lighter.
That is the good news: regular tai chi practice works. But…
…and bad news.
The bad news? What if we do not teach? There are dozens of wonderfully healthy mind/body practices, all of which work, and all of which fail because we do not stick to them! So how do we keep up our practice.
Worse news: not sure I have the answer. But here are some possibilities.
Daily practice outdoors with a group
This is what I hope to get started with my Empty Step MeetUp page. In large enough cities, in China or in Chinatowns world wide, we can get up in the morning and just drop by a park and do tai chi, alone or with others we have met or even with a teacher.
So much easier to stick to than solo practice. Even if we do solo practice in such a setting, just having other folks nearby practicing tai chi or qi gong of any style just makes practice more fun.
But finding a tai chi scene? Good luck. If I manage to get one started, I will let you know the trick.
Music
My substantial practice over the past year has taken me to the point where I can get off on tai chi chuan alone, but when I started on this deep dive a year ago I went straight to Tiffany Poon playing the first movement of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata because I knew it was a delight as an accompaniment.
Any pianist will do, but Ms Poon has a way with the keyboard.
Anyway, I have several pieces that go well with the tai chi form. Annie Lennox’s Diva album has several, and Neil Young’s Cortez the Killer might be my favorite after Moonlight.
Give music a try?
Micro Tai Chi™
The name Micro Tai Chi™ is a wonderful accidental pun. I got the idea while reheating my coffee in the microwave. I had sixty seconds to kill–not enough to go back to my desk, put my feet up, check the news. So I just started doing Snake Creeps Down transitioning into Golden Pheasant, and…
…there was nothing dutiful or obligatory about it, as would be dragging myself to do a full twelve minute form. Just a bit of fun working on something with which I was struggling–and the coffee was ready before I knew it.
So do not force yourself to practice the whole form, just knock off a movement or three–a micro amount of the form–while waiting for the microwave or one of those four commercial breaks during a sporting event.
Hmm. It should not be hard to come up with a short sequence you like, but watch this space for a new Micro Tai Chi™ page with a list of snippets I think might work.
Summary
Tai chi chuan really does produce wonderful benefits, but there is nothing magical or mystical about it. There is a bit of genius in its design–in the demands placed on us–such that twelve minutes of exercise helps like an hour of just walking. But no magic.
As the old joke goes, “How do we get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, practice, practice.”