Sunday, February 14, 2010

Roots, Buds, Flowers ...

Happy Chinese New Year ... and Happy Valentine's Day! We now enter the Year of the Tiger....

It's a cloudy, windy day in the North Woods. Our three and a half days of bounteous sunshine have succumbed to snow which began falling minutes ago. A stiff gust of wind "flapped the wings" of a small pine tree outside my window during practice; a green pine-needle-feathered bird readying for flight.

Refinements continue. Bad habits gradually release their hold on my body and mind and I continue to remind myself to float in a place of openness and receptivity.

My weight shift gradually improves as my feet remain on the ground longer and I clearly distinguish between straight and bent legs. My t'an t'ien leads me through movements, as usual. Still, I play with the "turns, swivels, and pivots" of my hips and pelvis per Sr. Antonia's handout at our January retreat. My intention to "stay in tuck" (as I understood it during my years of studying t'ai chi ch'uan) likely led me to keep my lower body less flexible and yielding than desired.

I feel incredibly blessed to have this opportunity to deepen and strengthen my practice. Yes, it is hard to realize and admit that I had misconceptions about how to perform movements or how to be in my body. Yet I realize that by recognizing and claiming those misperceptions and limitations I'm now more able to move beyond them. Through acceptance I can continue to change, grow, and improve.

By sewing (sowing) the seeds of t'ai chi chih practice in my own life I'm offering myself the opportunity to grow deeper roots, nurture healthier buds, and blossom into beautiful leaves and flowers....

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