Again, at the risk or being repetitive, class, let me remind you, "Imagine a long thread arising from the crown of your head and running up to the sky. " and adding something to the effect that this is the position your head should take in taiji. It should rise up from your spine and sit regally at the top of the last vertebra , aspiring to literally great heights. I must say something along these lines once every class. And no-one minds. Necks for a moment seem to straighten and extend a little bit, eyes gazing calmly straight ahead, yet within the next few minutes, or less, they scrunch back down. The eyes follow, seeming to search the floor as the student tries to get the foot in the right position for the next move. We joke -- is there an uneven floorboard, or even a dangerous crevasse you might fall into? (The floors in my studio at Spoke the Hub are those sprung wood dance floors with nary a speck of dust btw) And then we all smile in self-recogn
This is a blog about t'ai chi, specifically how we can apply the teachings of this ancient practice to our contemporary lives. How do we navigate an icy sidewalk? What is the best posture for that dreaded job interview? There are the eternal problems, of course, of back pain and creaky knees. My intention is to have a place to share ideas about t'ai chi methods of caring for our spirits and bodies in today's complicated world.