Water Tiger School of T'ai Chi Ch'uan

Over the last nine months, as students emerged from the home isolation brought on by the pandemic and returned to the mat, we've seen an adjustment challenge for some. That adjustment is one of space. After months of playing in living rooms, dining rooms, family rooms, etc., some have found the habits they'd formed adjusting to the smaller spaces and obstacles were hard to shed. This is why, throughout our months solely on Zoom, we always urged students to find safe space out...side to play - not everyone could and not everyone who could, did. It's interesting to see someone compress a movement to miss a low ceiling that isn't there, bend an arm to avoid a wall that isn't there, shorten a step to miss a sofa that isn't there, etc. #TaiChi #TaiChChuan #taiji #taijiquan #PracticePoints #HomeIsolation #CoronavirusPandemic #GetOutside #PlayOutside #Habit #Habitual #BadHabits #Adjusting #SpatialAwareness

Another day, another face heralding some wisdom ... - "What Cats Teach Us, Full Color Daily Calendar 2021", Willow Creek Press. #WordsOfWisdom #ShardsOfTruth #GoBig #PlayBig #DontSettle #DoNotSettle #LifeAdvice #LifeLessons #LifeTips #NelsonMandela #WhatCatsTeachUs #WhatCatsTeachUsFullColorDailyCalendar2021

The fifth, and final, of the "5 Practices for Nurturing Happiness" is "Insight": "We may know, for example, that something (a craving, or a grudge) is an obstacle for our happiness, that it brings us anxiety and fear. We know this thing is not worth the sleep we’re losing over it. But still we go on spending our time and energy obsessing about it. We’re like a fish who has been caught once before and knows there’s a hook inside the bait; if the fish makes use of that insight,... he won’t bite, because he knows he’ll get caught by the hook. "Often, we just bite onto our craving or grudge, and let the hook take us. We get caught and attached to these situations that are not worthy of our concern. If mindfulness and concentration are there, then insight will be there and we can make use of it to swim away, free." - Thich Nhat Hanh, "5 Practices for Nurturing Happiness", lionsroar(dot)com/5-practices-for-nurturing-happiness, February 2, 2021. Accessed March 27, 2021. #LifeLessons #Happiness #SelfCare #Mindfulness #BeingMindful #Concentration #LionsRoar #ThichNhatHanh #WordsOfWisdom #ShardsOfTruth

The fourth of Thich Nhat Hanh's "5 Practices for Nurturing Happiness" is as simple as is complex; it's "Concentration": "Concentration is always concentration on something. If you focus on your breathing in a relaxed way, you are already cultivating an inner strength. When you come back to feel your breath, concentrate on your breathing with all your heart and mind. Concentration is not hard labor. You don’t have to strain yourself or make a huge effort. Happiness arises ligh...tly and easily." - Thich Nhat Hanh, "5 Practices for Nurturing Happiness", lionsroar(dot)com/5-practices-for-nurturing-happiness, February 2, 2021. Accessed March 27, 2021. #LifeLessons #Happiness #SelfCare #Mindfulness #BeingMindful #Concentration #LionsRoar #ThichNhatHanh #WordsOfWisdom #ShardsOfTruth

We could resist neither this face nor this little bit of wisdom ... - "What Cats Teach Us, Full Color Daily Calendar 2021", Willow Creek Press. #WordsOfWisdom #ShardsOfTruth #Love #Evil #Cheating #Cheater #LaurellKHamilton #WhatCatsTeachUs #WhatCatsTeachUsFullColorDailyCalendar2021

Reading Thich Nhat Hanh's explanation of "Mindfulness-Based Joy", the third of his "5 Practices for Nurturing Happiness", and the story of how his illness impacted how he approaches his breath, we were reminded of yet another Temple Story from our past, "How to Walk the Earth". Here's today's cutting from the essay: "Mindfulness helps us not only to get in touch with suffering, so that we can embrace and transform it, but also to touch the wonders of life, including our own b...ody. Then breathing in becomes a delight, and breathing out can also be a delight. You truly come to enjoy your breathing. "A few years ago, I had a virus in my lungs that made them bleed. I was spitting up blood. With lungs like that, it was difficult to breathe, and it was difficult to be happy while breathing. After treatment, my lungs healed and my breathing became much better. Now when I breathe, all I need to do is to remember the time when my lungs were infected with this virus. Then every breath I take becomes really delicious, really good." - Thich Nhat Hanh, "5 Practices for Nurturing Happiness", lionsroar(dot)com/5-practices-for-nurturing-happiness, February 2, 2021. Accessed March 27, 2021. - Steve Hagen, "Buddhism: Plain and Simple" (Boston: Charles E. Tuttle Co., Inc., 1997), 101. #LifeLessons #Happiness #SelfCare #Mindfulness #BeingMindful #Joy #Joyous #BeJoyful #FindJoy #LionsRoar #ThichNhatHanh #WordsOfWisdom #ShardsOfTruth #SteveHagen

Please Note: We are more than willing to open a dialogue with anyone who does not agree with our perspectives on T'ai Chi Ch'uan, Qigong, and related topics. We will do our best to explain the "why" behind these perspectives and, who knows, perhaps you will convince us to change our mind. However, anyone who drops a disrespectful comment of any kind will have their post removed and will be blocked from the page.... #TaiChi #TaiChiChuan #taiji #taijiquan #Qigong #ChiGung #ChiKung #Fitness #PhysicalFitness #Exercise #PhysicalTraining #WorkingOut #Respect #Respectful #Dialogue #WordsOfWisdom

Cuteness and wisdom on yesterday's calendar page ... - "What Cats Teach Us, Full Color Daily Calendar 2020", Willow Creek Press. #WordsOfWisdom #ShardsOfTruth #FeedYourSoul #WatchWhatYouEat #JosiahGilbertHolland #WhatCatsTeachUs #WhatCatsTeachUsFullColorDailyCalendar2020

We were checking to see if a quote that crossed our path yesterday was already in our collection and, while we were doing that search, we happened to stumble upon this gem and wanted to share it: "A small trouble is like a pebble. Hold it too close to your eye and it fills the whole world and puts everything out of focus. Hold it at a proper distance and it can be examined and properly classified. Throw it at your feet and it can be seen in its true setting, just one more tiny bump on the pathway to life. - Celia Luce. #WordsOfWisdom #ShardsOfTruth #Trouble #Troubles #Perspective #ProperPerspective #CeliaLuce

Hey! Look! Wednesday Plyo with Tony Horton was back yesterday. It's been a bit since one of these; Tony's been busy. We can relate. His introduction includes this plan: "I'm not gonna jump that much today" and he notes that the first few exercises will be the warmup. (Warning! Warning! Warning! Even without all the jumping, this is still an intense approach to exercise)... #Exercise #PhysicalTraining #AerobicTraining #Plyo #Plyometrics #TonyHorton #TonyHortonFitness #THF #TonyHortonLife #THL #PowerNation #PowerLife

The subject line of the weekly eletter last week from Bill Douglas, the founder of "World T'ai Chi & Qigong Day", was certainly attention-grabbing: "Wu Wei: Tai Chi Saved Lives of Founders of World Tai Chi & Qigong Day last weekend". Here's an edited version of the story warranting that heading: <*>... Wu Wei, according to Wikipedia: (Chinese: ; pinyin: wúwéi) is a concept literally meaning ‘inexertion’, ‘inaction’, or ‘effortless action’ Tai Chi, once again saved my life, and this time Angela's life as well: Last weekend a deer jumped out in front of us out of the dark, I had my cruise control set at the speed limit of 70 mph. That deer [should] have crashed right through the windshield crushing me and Angela in the front seats. ... we [did feel] a huge jolt, but it wasn't the deer hitting us; it was from my foot flying up and slamming the brake giving us a [moment] of delay before the second jolt of the deer hitting our car, ... [ripping] off the front-right of our car ... rather than [coming] right through our windshield into [our] heads. Unfortunately, the deer did not survive, but [we] did. ... That kind of "Wu Wei () reaction would never have happened had it not been for years of Tai Chi and Meditation training ... [Tai Chi] improves our proprioception (sense of our body in space) [and] improves our brain/body connection and reaction ability. Meditation ... enables the brain to "get out of the way" of the instinct/reaction. ... <*> - Bill Douglas. "Wu Wei: Tai Chi Saved Lives of Founders of World Tai Chi & Qigong Day last weekend". Via email. Fri 12/4/2020 12:32 PM. [edited for brevity and clarity] #TaiChi #TaiChiChuan #taiji #taijiquan #Meditation #Mindfulness #Awareness #WuWei #AppropraiteAction #EffortlessAction #DeerInTheHeadlights #ThisStuffWorks #Benefits #LifeSavingBenefits

Yesterday's image post reminded us we hadn't shared this yet - it's actually a correspondence card a past student used to write a note, while still a student, about being a part of Water Tiger and a student of McElroy Laoshi. It was included in a scrapbook the studio students at the time presented Laoshi. The artwork is of cherry blossoms (embossed die-cut) and the card is a product of Fukui Asahido, Ltd., Kyoto. #CherryBlossoms #Artwork #GreetingCard #Scrapbooking #FukuiAsahidoLtd

Due to unresolved issues with both Facebook and YouTube Live services, we've moved this series into prerecorded video production - shot as if live - and posted on Mondays. #InThisTogether as we are #TogetherAlone. Water Tiger hopes these periodic lessons contribute to the ability of our students and our community to maintain an even keel during these trying times. We are now 67.3% through a year of Mondays. This is our 35th session since the spring. These weekly presentation...s are for our suspended 24-Posture Studio-Style program at @Sachem Library - and for the greater community. The warmup will be a stretch from Yoga with some bonus treats and then we'll get into some fundamental T'ai Chi sword drills. Because of the sophisticated nature of T'ai Chi Ch'uan, Qigong, and related arts, it is recommended, that before beginning this or any program of study, you should first consult your physician or therapist for advice on whether or not you should embark on the physical activity required by this or any program of study in T'ai Chi Ch'uan, Qigong, and other related arts. #TaiChi #TaiChiChuan #taiji #taijiquan #24PostureForm #YangStyle #MediumFrame #Yoga #SideStretch #StandingSideStretch #StandingSideBend #WeaponPlay #Jian #Straightsword #TaiChiSword #TaijiSword #SachemLibrary #SachemPubicLibrary #WellnessPrograms #AlternativeHealth #SuffolkCounty