Author: jisiutaichi

We are still clinging to the last of summer. It’s been so glorious having proper hot weather. I think my Australian roots mean I absolutely love it when it feels a bit too hot – sweat on the brow, wide blue skies, long days, slowing down. Tai Chi training has been a joy outside when we’ve been able to manage it- we actually went inside for shade on that 40 degree day! I’ve been growing a lot more in the garden and allotment, so been paying much more attention to the seasons and noticing wildlife and small changes. These echincea have been my favourites.

We are back practicing together as a group. Firstly it was outdoors. Then, tentatively it was indoors. It felt like reconnecting with other humans and trying to reconnect with our Tai Chi practice. Now we are back in our usual hall. The group is learning new forms, setting goals, improving – all the things we used to do. It feels great, and now it has become a habit again. We are welcoming new people who want to try Tai Chi. There is such energy and enthusiasm from people who are curious and who ” have always wanted to try”. I’m starting to think about organising a Christmas party, which is our usual end of year tradition. The small things are really the big things.

I was so surprised to see I’ve not made an entry for over a year. It’s like there has been so much change I can scarcely find words that can lend sufficient gravity. In truth, it’s just that I haven’t got round to it. My experience of the past year has been of polarising forces – high activity and pressure at my employment (as a health worker) and keeping up with the lifestyle and emotional implications of Covid restrictions, in contrast to the experience of an enforced stillness and a time of reflection. Tai Chi has been like an anchor. Training and learning has changed. Our Tai Chi community has kept in touch online and, when possible, outdoor and indoor socially distanced meetings. The connections have brought respite, enjoyment, structure. I think we’ve all felt the health benefits of tai chi, and been grateful for already having a practice so these positives are readily accessible. “The softest thing in the world overcomes the hardest thing in the world”. Adaptation has created a new quiet resilience.

About this picture: This painting was made by Sifu John who lives in Melbourne, Australia. During the many months of strict lockdown over the Australian winter in 2020 whilst all his Tai Chi classes were suspended, he returned to painting which had been a hobby many years previously. He still has all the supplies at home! This painting depicts a snake and crane in traditional Chinese style. These animal movements are said to have inspired the early development of Tai Chi techniques.

“Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it now. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now. ” This quote has been attributed to Goethe and to William Hutchison Murray, depending on which source you refer to.

Why is starting so difficult? Why is procrastination so easy?! I’ve looked at the garden and thought ” I would like to practice” or ” I should practice”. I’ve looked at my training diaries and been shocked at how long it has been between practices in some areas of my training, and felt guilty about it.  When it comes to tai chi practice  – I am lucky, I have a habit! I have a tai chi community that supports practice, and a community that relies on me to an extent to lead practice, to teach techniques, to provide the environment to practice, my body and mind knows the routines and can go back to it even after a break . I have to remind myself that my practice is my own, the discipline is what I make of it. I’ll get back what I put in.

I am about to welcome newcomers to our group, some I know have never done Tai Chi before. I really admire anyone who tries something new. I really admire someone who takes on a new challenge. What power and magic is in there!

One of the things I am most proud about our Tai Chi group, I feel I can take very little credit for. Over the years, our group has grown into a real community. I notice friendships have formed, the sharing of trials and tribulations, supporting each other through births and transitions and bereavements.. and, not least, sharing Tai Chi practice. Our obsession and curiosity of this amazing art form brings us together, and is the catalyst for all the other wonderful things that happen when human beings connect.

Practising in a group is still one of the greatest joys of our community.

We held our first retreat in Spring this year, in a lovely outdoor centre in wild North Wales. It was an idea I had been harbouring for a while. It seemed like the right time to see if there was enough interest to make it viable. I was so impressed with the commitment and enthusiasm of all who spent the three days away – trying out new ways of training, exploring aspects of Chinese culture, embracing communal living and being closer to nature. Maybe it will become one of our traditions.