The Journey Within

It’s the fruits aisle. You see people crowding around the fruits on display. In the oranges section, an expert hand dips in and out of the rows of oranges. To me, all the oranges look more or less the same. But somehow, the expert hand tries to look for the differences.

Everyone who’s crowding around the boxes of oranges seem to know which are the better oranges. Everyone seems to be an expert. The confidence in picking up an orange and deciding whether that particular one will be a good one seems so innate, that no one will fault the person even if she picked a lousy one. The fault will lie with the grocer.

If only this confidence can be translated to when we’re picking up shoes, or clothes or in choosing the things that really matter in life. Sometimes, the choice can be so obvious, like choosing oranges, that we fail to pick up on it.

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I was recently in a class full of students, as oppose to my individual training with my teacher. We were trying to correct the very first step of all Tai Ji forms – the “raise your hands and put it down”. I met a student who was really passionate about Tai Ji, and who started telling me that I shouldn’t be hung up with different forms, and that if I learn the principles, I will be able to access all forms. I didn’t disagree with what he said, but I just found him a bit strange telling me things that I myself has been preaching to myself.

I don’t speak about it as often because my experience tells me that we have to selectively give advice, so that the advice is apt and is just the thing the person needs to hear at that point in time. Anymore, none will be registered, any less, you might as well not tell. But he just started rambling, on everything about Tai Ji. I was a bit annoyed at first but I know why he did it. He’s passionate about the things he’s learning, and hence, indiscriminately wants to share all that he knows to others. He even made others practise (he helps out in class) just because he wants to increase his intensity of his own practice.

I have to say, I used to be like him, giving uncalled for advice, until I realised how little I know. I then started to refrain from saying much to other students. I would normally make suggestions when I see someone struggling, something for the student to consider. I believe this will be a more fruitful approach, rather than telling the principles verbatim. Contextual suggestions work better than regurgitating what I’ve learnt. I may sometimes add just that little bit more, hopefully able to tempt the student to want to know more. I guess in this instance, I’m trying to use the principles I learn in Push Hands.

Maybe I should tempt him to come to the Push Hands class.

Nevertheless, he has been quite an inspiration in his own way as I’m now wanting to better him at his game. I know this is antithesis to learning Tai Ji, but hopefully I can build this into a healthy competition.

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According to my current Tai Ji teacher, if you practise the form continuously one set after another, the effect is compounded. For example, if you practise the form twice in succession, you would have effectively practised 3 times. 3 in succession equals 6 times, 4 in succession equals 10 times, and so on.

To think that I’m always happy enough to have completed just one set. Anything more is a bonus. Apparently, the bonus is bigger than I initially thought!

p/s: Reminds me about running. Someone said that running stairs triples your workout compared to running on flat ground.

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