Tai Chi and Wedding Traditions, Somehow They Go Hand in Hand

Despite this being Saturday and my normal day for sleeping late, I was up early with KP and Hubby and heading to Georgetown for tai chi class. JustBill was not there, but class proceeded and more movements were added to the every growing repertoire for me.

Doing tai chi outside under a clear sky with the sun baking your body (I was very glad for the sunscreen KP had brought and the hat I had left in the van) helped to make me feel even better.

KP and I practiced more of 16 form, commonly referred to as "the short form" while the others practiced 103 form, or "long form." Although I am moving my upper body for the majority of it all I can tell a difference in the loosening of tight muscles in my back and great stretches for my arms and shoulders and even chest.

Suddenly, while doing the movements a wonderful peace settled over me. KP and Jaybird were there, two wonderful friends, and Hubby. My Hubby. My partner. We were finally doing something together we both could enjoy, and actually did enjoy. Once home we even talked about different moves and the new friends we were making in the tai chi class. JustBill had said last week that tai chi "was a way of life" and that "it should be used in every day living" but that really didn't make sense to me truly until this week when I was getting frustrated in writing and remembered yet another thing we had been told in class: So I distanced myself from the computer a couple of feet, sat in proper posture and breathed.

That's it. Just breathed. Slowly the frustration and annoyance I was feeling slipped away with each exhale and when I opened my eyes -- I had been unaware I had actually closed them -- the computer screen wasn't my enemy and the story wasn't a disaster in my head.

Another thing I did yesterday after just my first lesson in 16 form: I stretched my arms and shoulders slowly and carefully in "wave hand like clouds" move and felt the built up tension of pain leave a little at a time. The pain medicine is still needed, but the extra pain of tension may be something I can actually do without and keep from collecting. Will I ever be free of pain medication? I don't know, but I am unafraid to hope...now.

LadyD (finally have a nickname!) said she had discovered little things through her study of tai chi for herself. At the first class on Thursday I was expecting to learn little things about myself, but not quite so soon. I was definitely not prepared to "hope" in anything except for maybe trying to remember the movements. How much things are changing in this slowed down leaps-and-bounds of tai chi! She was there today, LadyD, and without fear or even warning I asked a question about a movement. Being comfortable with new people has always been hard for me, however, being comfortable with the tai chi group was almost a given from moment one!

Shocked? Amazed? Surprised? Oh yes! All of them and more!

I am hooked.

Although I wasn't planning on writing about tai chi today, I am quite glad I have because I love sharing the wonderful things I've found and discovered in this new life that is happening.

What was I going to write about? Wedding traditions. You can check them out here. I will also list a few of them throughout the upcoming weeks because some of them surprised me with their simplicity or where they came from, and, as always, made me think of something similarly related.

No post will be made tomorrow, probably, because it is Sunday. So, enjoy the weekend everyone. See you on Monday!