| Interview
Reaping
the Benefits after Returning to Tai Chi
– interviewed by Instructor Lis
In some ways, Sandra is typical of many of our students in that right
from the start, she enjoyed the classes and loved doing the movements. However, like many,
circumstances intervened which prevented continuous attendance. In Sandra's case, it was
babies, work and study.
Sandra started her Tai Chi journey in the late 1980's, attending about six months of
classes with a group at the university. In 1994, when she was doing a degree in ceramic
art and working as well, she went along to one of our classes on the recommendation of a
friend who had just begun. Sandra told me she had no specific reasons for taking it up
again, other than enjoyment and exercise. She had no physical injuries or problems. She
originally went along with her friend, because she had liked the whole concept of Tai Chi
from her earlier experience. This time, she was hooked. She continued until mid 1997, when
she took a break and then started again this year (2000).
When she began learning the traditional Yang Style in 1994 with us, she was surprised and
pleased to find how much physical exercise was involved. She recalled that in her previous
encounter with Tai Chi, there had been less emphasis on training the body, particularly
the legs. Sandra commented that she didn't realise fully just how much of a workout it
was, until she had learnt the whole form.
Her daughter Hannah was born in 1996, and Sandra
attended class
right through her
pregnancy. It's impossible to tell what effect this had on her baby. However, Hannah
apparently was a placid infant, so we assumed it might have been due to all the calming
meditation and movement. Sandra said she found that being pregnant lowered her centre of
gravity quite a bit, but of course, after the birth, practising was a lot easier! Michael
came along in 1998. It was then that Sandra found coping with two small children, studying
and working part-time left no room to attend Tai Chi classes at night. Classes then went
on hold for a couple of years.
During that time away from lessons, Sandra kept up her practice as much as possible. She
calculated there was probably a period of about nine months after Michael was born where
she did no training. Keeping a practice routine going takes self discipline, even when
attending class regularly, and Sandra seemed to manage pretty well on her own.
When Sandra did return this year, she was able to go into the Refinement class. She still
had the feel for it. However, the main problem was memory. She discovered that she had
blurred some of the connections and in some places had confused two similar moves.
I asked Sandra what the main reasons were for coming back, and she said what many of our
returning students say, "I noticed all sorts of little aches and pains that I hadn't
had before. I'd had symptoms of something like glandular fever, swollen glands and my
stress level had risen." Now she says she has noticed improvement already. She
doesn't get sick much and if she does succumb, it doesn't last very long. Her emotional
state is more balanced and she feels calmer and more able to see things clearly.
Sandra does shiftwork and her job involves heavy lifting. She is very conscious of using
her legs and body correctly and attributes that awareness to her Tai Chi training.
Coming back to regular practice reinforced by classes, Sandra told me that she now feels
she knows the form more thoroughly than before her enforced break. She understands it
better now, having clarified the areas she had had trouble with practising alone. She is
able to practise almost every day for at least twenty minutes and is lucky to have a flat
backyard with a good area for her form. Because of her shifts, she is only able to attend
one class each week, so the practice at home is important.
Similar to many of our students, Sandra prefers the movements to the standing Chi Kung.
She enjoys the meditation when she does it, but likes the moving forms better. With two
small children, time to herself is precious and she would rather spend it on the form.
About four years ago, she attended one of the workshops specifically on meditation and Chi
Kung, run by our traditional Chinese medical expert. It was very inspiring, and for quite
a period afterwards, Sandra spent more time on the Chi Kung practice. She now knows that
to progress further, she needs to prioritise her time to practise it every day.
I gained the impression that Sandra is a dedicated Tai Chi practitioner who will endeavour
to keep it going all her life. Through practice and experience, she has grasped the
concept of achieving what she can when she can. She is learning to remain calm, to let it
go when circumstances interrupt what she wants to do. Sandra knows that her Tai Chi will
always be there. She seems to have come to terms with "going with the flow" and
that is a valuable lesson to learn.
(This is an actual interview, but the names have been changed for reasons of privacy.)
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