You’re Never Too Young…

It was a dark and stormy night….no, wait, it was actually a beautiful pre covid sunny summer afternoon and Biscuit and I were out for a walk. At her request we made a point of walking past her favorite park when suddenly in the distance we spotted a group of elderly people doing what appeared to be some form of exercise. We decided to check it out from afar because Biscuit did not want people to think we were being nosey. We watched for a few moments, and then Biscuit asked me what I thought this was all about. I told her I thought it was Tai Chi. It was really amazing watching their movements in perfect unison with out a word being spoken. We were mesmerized and decided we needed to learn more about this.

**Hmm…not sure I have the right password**

Once we got home (after stopping at the local pet shop to get you know who a treat) Biscuit decided to fire up the lap top, and do some research. Much to our surprise there was lots of information about Tai Chi. Once Biscuit read about how good it is for you, she was on my case. She just wouldn’t let up so I finally decided on an organization that seemed to be the best fit and I signed up. About a week later I was going out the door to my first class.

Biscuit and I were really excited to get started….that is until she realized there were no dogs allowed. She finally stopped suIking once I promised to show her what I had learned when I got home.

When I arrived I was introduced to the Instructor, who was an older gentleman. He was very welcoming and radiated such an aura of calmness that I immediately felt comfortable. He explained to the class that it would take about three months to learn all the moves, but he emphasized that was just to learn the moves, not to perfect them. (Okay, I thought to myself, that seems a reasonable amount of time to learn 108 moves.) Once he started giving directions, I was amazed at his patience as he watched the newbies try to figure out their left foot from their right. This was truly a revelation for me. I have many virtues but patience isn’t one of them….. I can’t even wait for microwave popcorn!

Half way through the two hour session we took a break for tea, conversation and introductions. We each had to say how we got interested in Tai Chi, and what we hoped to gain from it. I told my “visiting the park with Biscuit” story but I didn’t really know at that point what I was hoping to get out of it, other than to get Biscuit off my back.

At the end of the class he handed us a sheet with all the names of the moves so we could practice what we learned at home. The names were fascinating. My favorites were white stork spreads wings, carry tiger to the mountain, and whip to one side. As soon as I got home I tried to practice the moves I had learned that night. I was excited to show Biscuit what we had done and I foolishly thought she would be interested too. And she was….. for about 30 seconds. (I couldn’t get her off the computer because she was playing a game of “fetch the bone” with her canine cronies.) Needless to say when I tried to do what we had been taught that night it was a disaster. This was going to be a real challenge!

Fast forward three months. I am at the end of my Beginner classes, and I feel much better than when I first started my Tai Chi journey. The moves come easier now. I am very comfortable knowing the difference between my left foot and my right hand.

The next step is to join the ongoing class which is called Bridging the Gap. It consists of people who have been practicing Tai Chi for a very long time. The goal of this group is to be able to do the complete set (108 moves) in unison with everyone.

I was a bit apprehensive on my first visit to this class, but these folks were very welcoming, and very forgiving, especially if you accidentally stepped on someone’s foot. As a newbie to the group they directed me to stand on one of the corners of a row. This was so that no matter what direction I turned there would always be someone I could see, and follow what they were doing. We took our positions and much to my delight I was able to complete the entire set without hurting anyone. I did notice that when we were done I was pooped, but the elderly people in the group didn’t even break a sweat! I always thought Tai Chi was for seniors and that it wasn’t really very hard or physically draining. Boy was I wrong! I guess you’re really never too young, when it comes to Tai Chi.

At this point you might be wondering if that’s all there is to Tai Chi…repeating the same movements over and over again? Well my friend not only are there many health benefits, for example improved balance and better circulation, it will also change the way you think about yourself. You will gradually realize that it is important to not be too hard on yourself and that mistakes are really okay. Tai Chi teaches you that you really do need to be in the moment and practice patience and compassion and cultivate stillness.

Finally, Tai Chi also taught me to never stop learning. You can always learn how to execute a move better and there is always room for improvement. It truly is a journey.

Unfortunately, with COVID, and all the health restrictions, I have not been able to get together with the rest of of the class, so for now its just me and my bored dog cultivating stillness.