What Now?

If you only saw possibility, what would happen?

Recently many of us on the planet were looking forward to the New Year. Hope, ideas of what to do, and how to be in the world abounded.  Now as the second week of the new year comes to a close where am I?  Where are you?

What we desire for ourselves really is possible. Do we have plans & strategies to arrive there? When I first really saw the possible health benefits from practicing Qi Gong,  I knew I needed to learn from someone. Merely reading books on the subject or watching videos was not enough. We have continued with classes since we found good teachers, including teacher training.

When you decide you really want to improve your health, these gentle yet powerful exercises (that anyone can do, anywhere at anytime) will guide you on the path of better living. Our next class Energy Circles Qi Gong begins on Tuesday January 24th at 7:30 pm EST. This class will be taught virtually, with videos available for deepening your practice. You may sign up here through the Takoma park Recreation Department. What are you waiting for? Your Health Is In Your Hands.

Energizing the Direction of Your Health

Do the daffodils and cherry blossoms lift your spirits? The longer days give you more time? The wind and sun inspire you to run outdoors? The warmth invite you to move your body, shake off winter isolation?

We had a delicious opportunity to experience spring energy at the beach with family recently, practicing Qi Gong in our favorite place and time - sunrise near this weather vane on the ocean. But no matter where you are in the world, we invite you to join us in re-directing your own body, mind and spirit to your health, to taking in the energy of nature and send out more peace, calm, joy and love to our suffering world.

Everyday Qi Gong begins in a week - April 5 until May 24, 2022 on zoom every Tuesday 7:30 - 8:00pm (EDT). From our home we will lead you in simple, gentle movements to improve health, mobility, flexibility and general happiness and peace of mind.

We will share exercises from many different classes, culling the ones that we practice regularly in the morning and throughout the day. You will find benefits quickly as these Qi Gong exercises invigorate energy systems, open up joints and relax our bodies, minds and spirits. Open to all - no experience needed. Zoom in to cultivate your Qi - Your Health is in Your Hands.

Sign up through the Takoma Park Recreation Department here.

Building Healthy Habits

My habits either develop or undermine the health of my body, mind and spirit. First I have to show up. I had been exposed to Qi Gong and even enjoyed practicing during meditation retreats and guitar seminars for many years. Then I would go home intending to practice and nothing happened. I needed the impetus of an instructor and a set opportunity to move me. Sound familiar?

Then I had my first class with Nianzu Li. Showing up once a week began a habit. That’s the first step - showing up. Once this is established the door opens. Since that first class a daily habit of practicing Qi Gong has been  established, an important part of my morning routine. Not too long into this process Joann joined the classes. Then in 2012 Master Nianzu Li began his 3 year teacher training program and here we are today, twenty years practicing, teaching and enjoying the benefits of these energizing movements.We invite you to join us in our next class Moonlight Qi Gong. No experience is necessary but you do need to sign up. Here’s the link for this virtual session.

A little food for thought on building habits from James Clear:

"People often think it's weird to get hyped about reading one page or meditating for one minute or making one sales call. But the point is not to do one thing. The point is to master the habit of showing up. The truth is, a habit must be established before it can be improved. If you can't learn the basic skill of showing up, then you have little hope of mastering the finer details. Instead of trying to engineer a perfect habit from the start, do the easy thing on a more consistent basis. You have to standardize before you can optimize.” James Clear Atomic Habits.

The Story of Chang 'e, the “Fair Lady” of the Moon

On January 25, 2022, we will resume teaching our fourth season of Moonlight Qi Gong, a beautiful series of six movements dedicated to the Goddess of the Moon.

There are many tales about Chang’e, including a well-known story given as the origin of the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival.* In a very distant past, ten suns had risen together into the skies and scorched the earth, thus causing hardship for the people. The archer Yi (or Houyi) was asked by the Emperor to shoot down nine of them, leaving just one sun. He was given the elixir of immortality as a reward. He did not consume it straight away, but let his wife Chang’e keep it with her, as he did not want to gain immortality without his beloved Chang’e. However, while Yi went out hunting, his apprentice Fengmeng broke into his house and tried to force Chang’e to give him the elixir; she refused and to prevent him from getting it, drank it. Chang’e then flew upward toward the heavens, choosing the Moon as residence, as she loved her husband and hoped to live nearby him. Yi discovered what had transpired and felt sad, so he displayed the fruits and cakes that Chang’e had liked, and gave sacrifices to her.

We were told the story by our Qi Gong teacher, Nianzu Li of the SongHo Health Center, who developed this particular version of Moonlight Qi Gong, which we keep alive by teaching to our students. When Chang ‘e (pronounced “Chang Ur”) was flying up to the moon, her husband was so distraught that he tried to shoot her down - in the first of six movements called “Gaze at the Moon.” He kept drawing back his arrow and then releasing it without shooting because he loved her and could not kill her. The second movement is called “Fair Lady” and represents Chang ‘e’s beauty as she moves and flies. The third movement - “Fly to the Moon” - represents her travel to the moon. The fourth movement is “Yearning,” her offering to the moon and longing for her husband’s safety. The fifth “Dancing,” shows her delight in living in the Moon. The sixth movement “Blessing” honors the moon, but also shows her strength and determination in choosing to continue to live close to her husband.

Pat and I gain tremendous energy and inspiration from practicing Moonlight Qi Gong, so we are dedicated to sharing its rich benefits for physical and mental health with our students. Join us if you wish - only 30 minutes from 7:30-8:00pm (EST) on Tuesdays from January 25 to March 15. Register TODAY at Moonlight Qi Gong II (Virtual)

*Related stories: Chang'e also appears in Wu Cheng'en's novel Journey to the West and in a lovely illustrated book Houyi Shoots Down the Suns, adapted by Wang Zhiwei (Beijing: Dolphin Books, 2005).

Celebrating Solstice with Qi Gong

Moonlight Qi Gong at the rise of the full moon 9/21

This is such a powerful time and place to absorb extraordinary energy from the universe. Yesterday at 3:21pm (EDT), the sun crossed the Earth’s equator from north to south. Equinox is a word from the Latin meaning “equal night,” so in September and March we come closest to having equal time for day and night all over the earth.

We’ve had a chance to focus on these changes in the planets the last several days, doing Sunlight Qi Gong at sunrise and Moonlight Qi Gong as the full moon rises from the sea. We attracted a new student who watched us practicing and joined us to do Qi Gong on the beach.

We explained to her that the Solstice is a powerful time to absorb and cultivate the energy of sun and moon, to bring it into our own bodies when both are visibly present. We have given ourselves this time to focus on these amazing cycles of the planets. We feel the pull of the moon on the waters of our bodies as the waves of the sea ebb and flow.

Being close to nature always helps me feel part of a great wholeness, less isolated, alone, especially during the pandemic. Our lives can become very small, very concentrated within just one mind, one body, one task, one place. There is a time for that too, but how wonderful to lose the “self” in the vastness of space and time, the movements of planets over which we have no control. It is a time of letting go of attachment to small spaces and responsibilities, to experience our oneness with the infinity of life.

Our next class will focus on the form Moonlight Qi Gong. You may register for free with the Takoma Park Recreation Department here: Moonlight Qi Gong. Class begins Tuesday October 5th from 7:30 - 8 pm Eastern. The class will run for eight weeks.

Spring Awakening

SPRING!  Daffodils, forsythia, cherry blossoms ready to unfold!  Time to celebrate life, survival of a year of covid fear and isolation.  Standing firmly on warming earth, we feel the energy surging up through our feet, legs, hips, torso, arms, neck and head. Just as energy surges upward through trees, into leaves and blossoms, we are warmed and energized by the sun’s warmth.

Never letting go of practicing together, even for a day, it is time to end our very brief vacation from teaching Qi Gong.  In these few weeks, I have promoted my new book AWAKE from Racism, and Patrick has produced new pieces for his upcoming album of original guitar music, Fences Frames and Alleys.

Now the Sun beckons, our students ask “when does the next class begin?”  We’re ready, refreshed, eager to teach my favorite form - Sunlight Qi Gong!  Perfected in our teacher training in 2012 with Master Nianzu Li, we love keeping this form alive and sharing its power and energy with our students.  Class begins April 6. Sunlight Qi Gong Registration Information Here

Photo by Oregon Department of Travel

Now More Than Ever

When is a good time to practice Qi Gong?  Daily, early in the morning, outdoors is our favorite time and place.  But the best answer is ANYTIME, ANYPLACE, every day - especially NOW.  

In these last few months, and increasingly in the last two weeks, our country has experienced intense health, economic, political and social upheaval.  We are all affected by these crises at a physical and psychic level.  If you have been feeling more agitation, anxiety, fear, anger, frustration, isolation or despair, you are not alone.  Each of us, consciously or unconsciously is affected on some level by the pandemic, racism and attacks on democracy.

Qi Gong is a practice that will help us to touch our energy, release negative energy that blocks us from free movement, and nourish positive, healing, hopeful energy in our bodies, minds and spirits.

Join us every Tuesday through March 2, 2021 7:00-7:30pm on zoom to practice Five Animal Play Qi Gong.  Enjoy becoming more rooted on earth, solid and powerful with Bear energy, more peaceful, confident and majestic with Deer energy.  Become an alert, agile, focused Monkey, and a graceful, flexible, concentrated Crane.  Feel the strength, power and courage of the Tiger in your arms, legs and torso.

Join us here.

Playing With the Crane

Last Thursday we taught a zoom Qi Gong class for elementary school teachers preparing to teach in person this week. These teachers needed calm, focus and balance to take on a very difficult job in the midst of the Covid pandemic. One of the exercises I modeled was the Crane Stretching its Wings and the Crane Flying.

The Crane develops grace, flexibility, balance and lightness.  It helps relax the whole body, balance the heart-energy, gently stretch ligaments and release the spine.  An ancient Chinese teacher described the crane as “graceful, standing like a pine tree, then opening its wings and soaring into the clouds.”  When in need of centering, balance and concentration, these Crane exercises lift up qi energy within and enable us to inspire others with our grace and steadiness.

As we age, it is very important to practice some balance exercises every day.  Since falls account for the highest number of accidents that send the elderly to nursing homes, I practice the Crane every day to increase my agility and balance.

The Crane stretches its wings in front, while lifting a leg behind the body on the in-breath, then gently brings both wings and leg back down on the out breath.  When the Crane flies, one leg begins firmly on the ground, connecting her to earth, as the other gently rises behind on on the in-breath,  The ‘wings’ rise at the same time to each side of the body, graceful and deliberate. Looking up we nourish the Crane's flying energy. Playing with the Crane’s Energy We Soar.

Enjoy The White Crane Stretches Its Wings with this Instructional Video.

Photo By Skeeze

Clearing the Small Universe

 Qi is everywhere, in all living beings, in the earth, the air, the sun, stars and moon, the whole Universe.  The area within our bodies and around our bodies is called “the Small Universe.”  This is the area where we have the most control over energy - the life force within our own bodies.  This exercise helps us clear, free and cultivate positive energy within our bodies and the area around us.

The video attached here demonstrates the movements and some words we’ve developed to help us particularly at this time in history.  We are in the midst of the worst pandemic our country and most of the world has experienced.  The climate is in extreme crisis.  And people are protesting the brutal racist attacks and murders in our country.  Faced with fear, anger, perhaps despair, we find even greater urgency to practice Qi Gong for ourselves and all who are suffering.  We cultivate energy in this small universe, hoping to extend the energy of peace, love and compassion to the world.

CHANGING OUR VIEWPOINT WITH QI GONG

When stressed or emotionally upset, I need a change of viewpoint.  I recognize the emotion, name it, calm it in body, mind and spirit.  Yesterday I had the experience of being obsessed about making a decision, so we went outdoors to do our Qi Gong practice by Sligo Creek.  After shaking, scooping, earthly and heavenly circles, we did all of Sunlight Qi Gong, my favorite long form.  Then my husband and I walked in opposite directions.   I found myself walking alone up a steep hill, still pondering my decision.  Suddenly, I turned around, walked backward and found an entirely new perspective!  The view from this height, looking down into a branch of the creek, reminded me of ‘Honey Creek’ in the Shenandoah Mountains, a refuge for me for over 25 years.  My mind, body and emotions were transformed in a second.  The energy in my head moved to my heart.  I felt open, free, flooded with fond memories of walks near my beloved creek near Old Rag Mountain.  The insight came to me that whichever way I decided to go, I had many options.  I was a free woman.

Several exercises we have been teaching in our Zoom Qi Gong classes on Saturdays are very useful for gaining this “change of viewpoint” when we need it.  Inviting the Temple Gong allows the entire body to shift from right to left, to touch the shoulder with one hand and gently tap the kidney with the other, then reverse, setting up a rhythm.  Especially when our eyes shift from far right to far left, we actually see ourselves, our body and our environment from a different perspective.  Yin and Yang become one.

Try walking backwards or Inviting the Temple Gong the next time you need a ‘change of viewpoint’!

Awakening Life Force

Qi Gong awakens the “life force” within each of us and connects us to the life force in all of nature.  This morning Patrick and I went to Pine Lake, a special place where we practiced often with our teacher, Nianzu Li, during Qi Gong teacher training.  We felt safe from the coronavirus because there were no other humans around.

We walked through the woods, alone, very early, before sunrise.  The lake was still magical, quiet except for geese greeting the light.  A heron moved very slowly, carefully, inspiring us to follow with some Walking Crane movements.  Then we practiced Sunlight Qi Gong, my favorite, to the rising sun!    

We urge everyone to keep moving, stretching, pulling away from computer screens to get outdoors, draw energy from the sky, the sun, moon, stars, flowers, blossoming trees, the water, birds, to touch LIFE.  Being in touch with nature helps us realize that each of us is a cell in the vast, alive, ever-changing, beautiful Universe!

Join us on Saturdays, beginning April 4 at 3:00pm for a Zoom Qi Gong class.  Prop your computer where you can glance at the screen and follow along with 30 minutes of Everyday Qi Gong.  Message us from the our home page for details.

Five Study Reminders

FIVE STUDY REMINDERS

[These five terms are originally from the “Zhong Yong” – chapter 31 of the Book of Rites.]

博學。足多功夫
審問。非口問是聽勁
愼思。時時想念
明擺。生生不已
篤行。如天行健
[1] Learn abundantly. (Sufficient learning will lead to a great deal of skill.)
[2] Inquire meticulously. (This does not have to do with querying verbally, but with listening to energy.)
[3] Ponder wholeheartedly. (Think about the material constantly.)
[4] Discriminate clearly. (New things will always continue to come at you [and you should keep yourself from being distracted by things that are not important].)
[5] Practice sincerely. (“Nature acts with vigor. [Likewise a gentleman ceaselessly improves himself.]” – Hexagram 1 of the Book of Changes)

Translation by Paul Brennan.

Happy New You

People do not decide their futures, they decide their habits and their habits decide their futures.

- F.M. Alexander

Happy New Year, New Decade and most importantly Happy NEW YOU!

Health is created one choice at a time. Each choice deepens or lessens a habit. What choice will I make to create a healthier life. Will I use my time to cultivate energy that enriches my being? Move, meditate and make space for nourishing my body, mind and spirit?

One choice at a time Joann & I have built our meditation and Qi Gong practices. Classes and retreats were vital to our initial development and continue to inform our work after decades of practice. Today is the first day of the year, a time when many set resolutions, hopes and aspirations. Please pause right now - enjoy a few mindful breaths. Stand up and quietly move cultivate your energy with Qi Gong. Want to go deeper?

Sign up for Every Day Qi Gong which begins at 7pm on Tuesday January 7th, 2020 in the Dance Studio of the Takoma Park Community Center. Register using this link: Every Day Qi Gong Class

Will I choose the path of well-being by giving myself the gift of Qi Gong? Make the time. You are worth it!

Practicing Together

At the end of our practice on Bethany Beach a couple sunrises ago, a woman came over to ask if we were practicing Tai Chi. We were practicing Sunlight Qi Gong. She was excited when we told her to feel free to join us for the remainder of the week. And she has. While we always enjoy and are energized practicing along the edge of the Ocean at Sunrise, the addition of another person gently intensified the experience.

This is true for us when we come together to practice in class also. How is your health today? How are you nourishing your energy? Need to increase the flow of good energy, feelings and overall being? Join us for our Moonlight Qi Gong class in the Dance Studio of the Takoma Park Community Center beginning Tuesday October 15th at 7pm. Currently enrollment is 50% full. What are you waiting for? The link for registration is:

Moonlight Qi Gong at Takoma Park

Remember Your Health Is In Your Hands.

The Principle of Balance

When practicing Qi Gong any exercise on one side of the body is also performed on the opposite side to achieve balance.  The yin/yang of complimentary balance is one of the basic principles of Qi Gong exercises.  Balance is one of the most important ways to achieve good health, longevity, happiness and creative productivity.

We need balance between:

Mind/Body

Doing/Being

Right brain/Left brain

Action/Rest

Yin/Yang

Alone/Group

Work/Play

If we go to an extreme on one side of the scale in any of these areas, we as individuals, groups and society become imbalanced, and - at worst - create war with ourselves and others.

The Yin/Yang symbol also shows us that we can’t have one side without the other, that we are whole beings, that our mind/body/spirit is really one.  We “inter-are” with ourselves and other living beings.  Thinking dualistically about balance, as if one “side” is better than the other, can exist without the other, is illusion.  There is no yin without yang, no inside without outside, no me without you.  Seeing the two as one is important to being human, being here in the now, being alive, functioning as a mind/body in a world full of energy.

Our meditation teacher gives the example of our right hand accidentally hitting our left hand with a hammer.  The hands don’t start accusing and fighting with one another.  The right hand drops the hammer and soothes the injured left hand.  Our hands are not separate from us, from our whole body.  We are one, not separate parts.

Sometimes when I am fearful, anxious or upset about a mistake I’ve made, I beat up on myself, thus sending a “second arrow” of pain into my heart.  Instead of having compassion for that little girl in me who said something unskillful or interrupted someone, I make her feel worse about herself with added blame and guilt.  I need to remember the example of the right hand dropping the hammer, holding the wounded left hand, comforting myself for the error and doing what I can to make amends quickly, then to let it go.  I’m human.  I will make more mistakes.  But beating up on myself doesn’t help.  It merely adds to my pain and dysfunction.

When we are hurting, let us use the energy of mind, breath, our whole body, to soothe and heal the injured or stressed area of ourselves.  Moving our bodies brings calm to our minds.  Calming emotions with Qi Gong and meditation allows the body to rest.  True balance comes when body/mind/spirit operate as one.

Photo by Ray MacLean

Morning Practice

Happiness is not a matter of intensity but of balance and order and rhythm and harmony. - Thomas Merton

Waking up early to allow myself time to align my body, mind and spirit with my morning practice is the greatest gift that costs nothing. This small amount of time management reinforces my ability to optimize my energies and to approach being how I wish to be in the world. In the words of Robin Sharma it is matter of mind over mattress.

Home and work are connected. My morning practice of journaling, Qi Gong and Mindfulness Meditation is what sets my day up to have balance and order; and ensures my sense of rhythm and harmony. As I have mentioned in class, during my 9-5 work years, I had a morning practice, would leave my home in great shape and then get lost in the challenges of work. The pressure, people, problems and projects would overwhelm my energy. My emotions would surge and lessen my performance, thus compounding both energy and time constraints. Anxiety, impatience and even fear would engage a cycle of less than productive habits energies and day by day the pressure mounted. This is why I had to learn to bring mindfulness into my work space.

Morning practice is where I learn about myself, cultivate calm, insight; and transform my habit energies. The serenity generated provides a balanced lens to reflect on thoughts and actions. Pausing at work allows me glimpses and further opportunities, but without the energy cultivated in morning practice, I may have too little to work with.

During my practice I cultivate groundedness. I work on my balance and flexibility. Then I am as free as possible for the coming hours of work and life. My negative habit energies may overrun me again and again; but each day I devote myself to morning practice those habits are weakened. I water positive seeds in my heart and mind. I awaken my spirit. I establish the possible here and now knowing, that the roots of my ability to be mindful at work is watered by my morning practice.

Photo by amrufm

Happy New Breath

On average we take 25,000 breaths per day. Fortunately, thanks to our autonomic nervous system we do not need to be aware of those breaths, we do not need to remember to breath. But what happens when we do bring awareness to our breath is transformative. Our bodies and mind arrive here and now. Perhaps we notice our thoughts, feelings or physical state. Real choice becomes an option for our next steps. Peace comes to us and spreads to others. Truly vital and powerful.

With each new breath we can let go of our past stories and habits.

With each new aware breath we leave the prison of our future concerns.

Connecting here and now with those around us, we learn ways to recognize, release and retrain our stressors.

Life is just a breath away.

Learn how your your job to can help you wake up to the present moment. Class begins January 8th click here:

HAPPY NEW BREATH

Now is the time we have been practicing for.

If Not Now - When?

Now is the time we've been practicing for. - Zenju Earthlyn Manual

Distractions, deadlines and delays drive me throughout my day. How often do I pause to notice where I truly am? When I do pause I become alive, noticing if my body is relaxed, my heart aflutter and the state of my mind. Are my feelings driving my actions? How has this worked out in the past? Is my mind rehashing old tales about individuals and institutions? Does my body need a stretch and release?

Through practice I can gather information about my present state and altar and adapt to the situation at hand tuning body, mind and feelings. Communication clears; creative options arise and connections with others deepen. All of this is possible by pausing throughout the day. How do I remember to pause while moving at full speed ahead?

The big pause is my morning qigong and meditation practice. Practicing while my energy is fresh assures that I leave home with courtesy, kindness and love etched into my being. Over time I have developed nudges related to my professional tasks to invite me to become present. Telephones, hand washing and certain individuals serve as possible reminders to pause and waken to the here and now. My day planner not only guides me to my goals and appointments but helps me attune to this precious moment.

Want to explore the power of pausing and aligning with the present moment in your life? Is taking better care of your health in the New Year when of your resolutions? If so - click here and sign up now for Minding Our Business right here and now!

Photo by Gerd Altman

What Was I Thinking?

You are what you think.

Everything arises in the mind.

With our Thoughts we make the World. - The Dhammapada

I have heard that we have 64,000 thoughts a day! How many of these go unnoticed, repeated and manifested in ways counter to who I want to be? On and on, over and over, day after day I think and think and think. Occasionally I observe my thinking; every morning when I journal and meditate and then throughout the day when I remember to pause. These moments when I pause provide insight, hope and transformation.

Over the years I have developed reminders or nudges to wake me up during the day. Once my attention has been attracted by one of these, I have a choice. Do I plunge forward as I am despite what I may be thinking, feeling and maybe even doing, or do I find my breath and take a few moments to calm and re-calibrate. I align with my intentions and aspirations, attune to where I really am and begin again.

Are you observing your thoughts? Practice mindfulness as if your life depended on it. Because life does depend upon us - with our thoughts we make the World.

Need help practicing and pausing throughout your day? Bring your New Years Intentions into Action with Minding Your Business.

Class begins January 8th at the Takoma Park Community Center- Register Here Now

Open to the Here and Now

Even an angel needs rest. - Hafiz

Just for this moment - rest in who you are now. Remove the blinders and see where you are. Open awareness by following the breath. Reflect on the “you of now.” Am I tense? Mind leaping from thought to thought? Heart astir? Are you open to suggestions from others?

What happens when guidance is offered to me? When I am open, the flow of supportive thoughts and perhaps even action begins. If I am not open, this resistance blocks the flow of energy and subsequent transformation. In any given moment, both the ability to receive and resist guidance are alive within me. Ironically both may lead to creative outcomes. In either case, I must be open to the present moment and look at myself with the eyes of compassion. As I water the seed of understanding in me, my heart opens to love - which is the greatest possibility to dwell in.

Refresh the “you of now “ …

On Saturday October 20th we will be offering a variety of practices we use to open our minds, heart and bodies. Rest the angel in you during this day of mindfulness and qi gong and energize your being!

To register for this event click here.

Photo by Momental