By Susan Hewitt
As a youngster of between three to five, my mother, who spoke only Chinese, took me each week to all the Chinese opera plays in Singapore. I must have endured at least three to four years of weekly visits to these operas, performed mainly in the Teochew dialect. Sitting still for three hours at a time was the hardest part when one is four or five. I loved the fight scenes, though. The actors and actresses fought with spears, sabers, double swords, and the scholarly characters, drew their double-edged swords from scabbards hanging at their sides.
I first heard of Tai Chi in a high school Mandarin class in Singapore from Mrs. Pang. She was of the old country, in northern China. She spiced up our classes with stories of what Tai Chi practitioners could do. She was a sturdy woman in a cheongsam of medium height, rugged looking. I say rugged because one would think twice before wanting to tangle with her in the middle of the night in a dark alley. We were all impressed with her demeanor. While my classmates were highly entertained, I quietly resolved to learn Tai Chi down the road. My cousins in the family who were Tai Chi practitioners in Singapore for many years also endorsed the art and the need for daily practice.
Years passed; life was busy. But I never forgot the resolve to learn Tai Chi. On a windy morning, just a week after my husband had suffered a sudden fall and fatal heart attack while on a fishing tournament, I came across a Tai Chi group while walking at Kailua Beach Park. As I stood watching, I was invited to join. It was a turning point in my life.
Since then, three years have passed. I can say I have been pretty faithful in my attendance on Saturday mornings at the Park. I joined another class on Wednesday evenings after work. I found I needed the practice and the workout more than once a week to carry the momentum of the Saturday morning sessions. I have also enrolled in Tai Chi workshops over the last two years when they were offered.
How has Tai Chi helped me? At a time when I was emotionally wrought, the concentration and discipline mandated in Tai Chi movements gave me a strong sense of focus and support. Equally important was the physical aspect of the movements, and the workout left me spent after completing each session during the first six to nine months. After several months of effort, the aftermath of a session made me pleasantly relaxed, and at the same time refreshed. My thinking, rationale and physique became more balanced. The physical aspect was particularly beneficial, as was the meditative aspect emotionally sustaining. Combined together, I was able to achieve a balance which carried me through to a newer perception and acceptance of life and day-to-day living. In my Tai Chi journey, I feel that employing Tai Chi principles and practice enables one to almost view and experience life from a somewhat detached stance. From this angle, I can occasionally experience some playful curiosity on why such is so, and the good humor to ponder, reflect, even change the pattern or turn it around. Failing that, I can ultimately accept a given situation philosophically.
As a side benefit, my posture and spine is definitely improved. Twenty-five years ago, I totaled a car at Kipapa Gulch. I was able to walk away, but the impact between two concrete supports under the bridge caused some damage to my 3rd and 4th vertebrae. Off and on over the years, I would experience substantial back pain which would last for weeks at a time until the pain made me seek out the osteopath. I have not had to visit one lately.
On general health aspects, where three years ago, I was experiencing shortness of breath just out in the yard picking flowers, that has gone away. Where if I bent down to pick up something, I would have the uncomfortable feeling of blood rushing to my face, and stand up to see my face completely flushed in the mirror, that also has gone away. I can actually crawl like a baby almost gracefully, even athletically now, or work or sit on the floor quite comfortably.
In Tai Chi, I am discovering new ground each day. I?ve learned to breathe deeply from the dan tien. I have found there are other aspects of Tai Chi. Today, however, I am looking forward to a long sojourn, with some expectation, curiosity and erstwhile dedication to this ancient art form.