John’s Tai-Blog @ Camp Tai ChiTai Chi and anything I can relate to Tai Chi … like life

How Tai Chi Overcomes Embarrassment

Master Cui and Miriam Holland

What’s happening when your face turns red?  Is blood rushing to the surface of the skin on your face?  No, you’re concentrating on the wrong thing; that’s what’s happening.

When I first started practicing tai chi I wasn’t very good, so when my teacher corrected me it was no big deal.  After a year or so, I really thought I’d learned a lot.  I was at least good enough to take new students off to the side and show them a few basics or answer questions for them.

The problem with this theory is, when you start to work with someone else you really find out how little you know.  My teacher, Laoshi Miriam, was thrown into teaching by our master after studying with him for a couple of years.  Master Cui told her she new enough to share what she had with beginners, and he knew she would learn much more about herself and her abilities if she taught others how to do what she had learned not so long ago.

The usual drill for me early on was to take a brand new student and show them a few things.  Then Laoshi Miriam would come over and ask them to show her what they had learned.  After watching them she would sometimes ask me to demonstrate the move.  Then she would correct me, not them.  It was more than a little embarrassing.

Then the first time I met Master Cui I watched him give Laoshi Miriam corrections in front of everyone.  Now neither Master Cui nor Laoshi Miriam was abusive, they simply gave corrections.  All the same, it can be rather embarrassing to be given corrections in front of someone you’re supposed to be teaching.

This common Chinese style of teaching accomplishes a number of things, all of which are meaningful when learning any martial art.  Teaching is about passing on the art so that the art will live on.  We are important because we are the ones passing it on, but in the classroom the art trumps our egos.

I still feel a little embarrassment when Laoshi Miriam or Master Cui, now my master as well, correct me in front of others.  Now though I find it easier to focus on the art and not on myself.  It’s helped me develop better concentration and it helps me be a better student and a better teacher.  Master Cui still says he wishes he had listened more to his grandfather while he was alive, and I’m sure he judges himself more critically than his grandfather did.

Next time you find yourself feeling embarrassed, ask yourself where you’re focusing.   If you can set your ego aside and focus on what’s really important, embarrassment ceases to be a part of the equation.  It can be difficult to set aside your ego and look at the situation without preconceptions.  Difficult but it’ll help you focus on what’s really important, and it will also help you correct the situation rather than dwelling on what you may have done wrong.

Aside from me teaching us how to better deal with the inevitable embarrassing situations of life, Master Cui is also a great role model for how to live a good life.  He seems to treat everyone, from the street vendor to the owner of a large company the same, with respect.  His sister is same and she’s every bit as fun to be around.

Although Master Cui can be a lot of fun, he can also be a very tough teacher.  This tells me something of the family he comes from.  More often than not he seems to be able to put himself in the other person’s shoes.

I think this picture really captures what it’s like to spend time around Master Cui.  I don’t remember why he’s pointing but, as usual I’m sure he was joking with the photographer.

Your thoughts?

Is Tai Chi Like Love?

Since I’ve said I can compare anything to tai chi I guess I would have to say yes, but I really do think the two are very much alike in more ways than you might at first imagine.  Tai chi, like love, is often not what we think it is at first.  New students usually think tai chi is a simple exercise they can learn fairly quickly and practice without needing to think about it.  Young’uns usually think love is something they can “find” and then have forever.

Tai chi, like love, takes a lot more effort than we realize at first, but when we get it… oh does it ever payoff.  Love, like tai chi, if we’re willing to work at it without having too many preconceptions, requires more allowing than work, oh but when we get it…

The question I have for you is, “Are you working too hard at learning tai chi?”  If you’re working too hard at tai chi, or love for that matter, chances are you “don’t got it yet.”  Tai chi is mostly about accepting your body for what it is and letting it teach you what you need to know.  Love is about accepting someone who makes your heart sing for who they really are, and then letting them teach you about yourself, and them.  See, they’re practically the same thing. 

“Ambition is like love, impatient of both delays and rivals.”  ~  Buddha

How ambitious are you in your tai chi practice?  Accepting things for how they are and moving forward from there is what makes both tai chi and love work, not to mention making them worth the effort.  Your thoughts?

John

Tai Chi Push Hands… Pushing The River?

In life people often try to make things happen.  Tai chi, as well as life, has taught me you can’t actually “make” anything happen.  You can however, know what you want and keep it in mind as you move toward it, more on this in second.

In push hands (tui shou) you listen to your opponent’s energy as they move with you.  Tai chi is a defensive art, so we wait for the opponent (aka ally) to attack and then either neutralize the attack or turn it back on them.  Even in offensive marital arts, like karate, you can’t actually make your opponent do anything.  You can only guide them and the better you are, the more effective you are at guiding.

The key is to be flexible, in mind as well as body.  When your opponent begins an attack your better off if you have several options ready and available, that is if you’re going to be effective.  Even if you’re attacking you still need a number of options, and you’ll need to be ready to defend yourself if your opponent turns the attack back on you, or if they counter attack.

All right back to daily life.  Do you consider life to be your opponent or your ally?  If you take the first viewpoint, life is going to be pretty hard no matter how well things are going for you.  If you take the viewpoint that life is your ally, life can be pretty good, even if it doesn’t look that way from the outside.

Have you ever been in a 3rd World country?  If so have you ever noticed how often the people there were laughing, even in the midst of what we would consider terrible living conditions?  Sure most of them want more than they have, but they don’t get quite so caught up in how there going to get it, or that they don’t have right now.  So when an opportunity arises they take it.  They’re flexible, and believe it or not they’re happier than most Americans.

How many times have you missed an opportunity because you were focusing on “how” what you wanted should come about?  How many opportunities do you think you missed because you never noticed them?  Extremely successful people all seem to say the same thing, “Opportunity is everywhere; you just need to recognize it as opportunity.”

I know a number of very successful people, most of whom have had significant setbacks at one time or another.  These folks understand the need to remain flexible.  If one thing doesn’t work, it’s not important.  Do something else; try a different approach.  Thomas Edison understood this in way few people do.  While developing a viable electric light bulb, he experimented with around 10,000 different materials before he got the results he was looking for.  He fully believed in the saying, “There is no failure, only feedback.”

Some might say, with this attitude, Edison “made it happen”.  I say he knew exactly what he wanted and every time he found something blocking in his path, he was flexible enough to go around it and keep moving.  I’m sure he occasionally felt discouraged, but it never stopped him and he never failed because he never stopped trying.

If you’re feeling a little discouraged by your inability to do a particular form in tai chi, just keep practicing.  You’ll get it, and the victory will be sweet when you do.  I promise.

“Don’t push the river, it flows by itself”  ~  Lao Tzu

Your thoughts?

John

Tai Chi And The Mona Lisa… The Same Only Different?

What do you think of when you think of tai chi?  Do you think of simple beauty, grace, elegance, or just “Man that’s slow”?  It’s an unusual comparison, but it’s not a stretch… at least in my warped mind it isn’t.

The similarities between the Mona Lisa and tai chi might surprise you, but then again maybe not.  People who know little or nothing of tai chi tend to discount its value, that’s definitely not the case with the Mona Lisa though… anymore.  So how can I compare the two?  Keep reading.

Tai chi and the Mona Lisa have some distinct similarities:

1. Both are beautiful to look at.  Tai chi when a skilled player does it, obviously.  When done by someone with little grace or skill it can be a little like watching a sloth climb out of a tree, boring yet strangely interesting.
2. A master of the art created the Mona Lisa.  Master Yang Luchan created Yang Tai Chi, although it is in a constant state of flux as it passes from generation to generation.  Some generations alter it more than others.  ;~)
3. Both are considered timeless classics.  Some people think this because it takes so long to complete one move in tai chi… Everybody now! “As the time keeps slippin’ away - that’s O.K., cause I never meant to be here that long anyway.”
4. Both are pretty old.  I think tai chi is older than the Mona Lisa but I haven’t really checked.  Besides, by the time you’ve learned all you can about tai chi you’re probably going to be as old as the Mona Lisa… but I’ll bet you won’t be a wallflower.  OK, so that part’s kind of a difference not a similarity.
5. And last, but definitely not least, and I’ll bet you didn’t know this one.  The man who commissioned the Mona Lisa refused it.  Tai chi is often discounted or refused by people who think it’s too boring or that it can’t possibly do much for them.  I have to say though, I’ve NEVER heard anyone say they wished they had never taken up tai chi ;-)>.

So there you have it.  Tai chi and the Mona Lisa, almost indistinguishable, unless of course you actually look at them.  To quote Flow, “Little joke… very little, there it goes - poof!”

Your thoughts?

John

A Tai Chi Fool, or A Fool For Tai Chi?

Occasionally I like to poke fun at things, like me for example.  I do a lot of talking - writing really - about tai chi.  If you’ve been reading my blog for a while you probably know I view myself very much as a student of tai chi.  I know I don’t have all the answers.  I do however have some strong opinions.

I think tai chi is best thing since sliced bread, or since tai chi came first maybe the other way around, but you get the point.  Tai chi is pretty cool stuff.  I’ve recently been reading the updated version of the book, Chi Running.  Being a former leisure runner who seemed to often hurt myself, I gave up running several years back.  Since then I’ve found I really miss the times I’ve run on park trails and other beautiful places.  I enjoyed taking in the scenery as I ran so I’m excited about this Chi Running stuff.

I also think tai chi is everywhere in everything we live.  You just need to look for it.  There’s a lesson in opening a heavy door, another in picking up a gallon of water, and there are lessons in running.  Danny Dreyer, the author of Chi Running, has really thought through his approach.  Simple exercises are the best in my mind, and he’s really worked at keeping things simple.  There’s a lot to Chi Running, and like tai chi, it’s based on a set of clear and basic principles.

I invite you to look at something you do every day and see if you can discover the tai chi lesson within it.  There’s an old saying, “It’s better to be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.”  I do more than enough talking on this blog so you probably know where I stand with this saying.  For now I leave you to your own devises and with the profound words of the infamous faux-losopher, Bob Tzu. 

“Now I’m in a box.”

Pythagoras said, “A fool is known by his speech, and a wise man by his silence.”

… Pythagoras never met a mime.

Your thoughts?
John

P.S.  I found this foolish pic here:  http://nortelinsider.wordpress.com/2009/02/22/fool-me-once-shame-on-you-fool-me-twice/

Tai Chi and The Cost of Living

For some people the cost of living seems to be inordinately high.  When you look at them, it’s as if they’ve paid out a pound of flesh each and every payday for quite some time.  Other people, although they might appear to be advancing in age, don’t seem the least bit phased by the passage of time.

What I’ve noticed watching people over the years is that attitude seems to be the most important factor.  I’ve seen people who smoked, drank and ate fatty foods who could keep up with someone half their age.  I’ve also seem people who never smoked, wouldn’t think of imbibing, and ate only the healthiest of foods almost all the time, who couldn’t keep up with the average person, 10 years their senior.  The healthier the person it seems, better the overall attitude, and the more they laughed… at everything.

I know you’ve heard me say this before, but it’s the same attitude I find in people who stick with tai chi.  They can laugh at themselves and the longer they stick with tai chi, the better their attitude and the younger they seem to be.  They move with more grace and that grace seems to seep into their attitudes.  Now I’m not saying, “study tai chi and one day you’ll magically be transformed into a happy person”, but tai chi does influence people over time.

I recently saw the “The New Karate Kid” and I could see the influence of attitude in the characters as well.  The bad teacher, with an attitude I never once witnessed in China, looked older than his years.  The teacher who lost his way also looked old and worn down, yet as he came back into the world of the living using kungfu, he became more youthful.  He remembered what life was really about and kungfu helped him recover.  Kungfu and tai chi are sister arts by the way.  Even the “bad kid” looked older to me than the other kids.  My observation has been that older people with this type of attitude seem to have to really work at staying in shape and wear their bodies out at an early age.  That’s a high cost for living life.

So what am I really getting at here?  Even though I doubt anyone reading this post is this extreme, if you’re feeling worn down and older than your years, give tai chi a try and let it give you back some of the life you’ve been paying out.  Tai chi slows you down and it paradoxically teaches you to move faster than you ever thought possible.  It refills your chi reservoir and makes it easier to have a better attitude.  After all the better we feel physically, the better our mental state naturally becomes.

I think it’s important to remember the alternative to growing old is dying, so you may as well enjoy the process… no matter what your age.  Today I leave you with the profound wisdom of a deceased humorist.

“I haven’t heard of anybody who wants to stop living on account of the cost.”  ~  Kin Hubbard

Your thoughts?

John