One of my summer vacation experiences was to make the acquaintance of a lovely woman from Shanghai, China – a physics professor who, with her daughter, son-in-law and two grandchildren living in the states, rented a house near mine on Lake Michigan. She saw me working in the yard and walked over to get acquainted. In perfect English, she introduced herself, and we bonded immediately as mothers and grandmothers. But there was also other common ground - exercise.
When I explained what I do she told me she did Tai Chi every morning outside. I asked if I could join her the next day. She not only said yes, but asked if she could also exercise with me. She had never done any American exercise nor exercised to classical music. Ihad only had two Tai Chi experiences – - the first one in the sixties with Sophia Delza, who introduced Tai Chi to this country many years ago, and one class I took in California in the eighties.
The next morning she came to my house and exercised with me; then we went to the front yard of her house, where I followed her in Tai Chi. We talked, asked questions, and talked some more. She confessed it was very hard for her to learn to move with the music and stretch up and out from the center of the body. I confessed that I had a hard time containing the movement within the body, and wondered why, when Tai Chi seemed so smooth and relaxed, that it was also training the body to resist attack – “to protect its inner spirituality,” she explained.
In my daily, morning exercise routine I have only one exercise I do that comes close to a Tai Chi expression; it’s a pass through movement that connects one exercise to another – a reach out arm motion to the side (with a bent knee to allow for an extended reach) that cups the hand in an inward pull as I return to center. Every morning now, when I come to that particular movement I think of the bridge of friendship we made between east and west through the art of exercise.
Dear Ann,
I quite happily stumbled upon your “Moving to Mozart” DVD in my local public library. I brought it home and did all the sessions at one viewing. I felt energized, and yet relaxed and peaceful too – I’m sure you know what I mean! Well, now I am an Ann Smith addict (it’s a good addiction!). I have purchased Moving to Mozart, Stretching for Seniors, Inhale,Exhale, and Rise and Shine. I love them all and rotate through them. I have been doing them every morning after my walk.
I am 50 years old, eat a healthy vegan diet, and have not really had any major health issues, so I feel very blessed. But I did notice that I was getting very tight and wanted to regain the flexibility I had as a youngster when I took ballet and gymnastics lessons. I am feeling more flexible already, and look forward to each morning spent with you!
I also wanted to say that I love classical music (I play the piano and love Mozart, Bach, and Handel) and so I really appreciate moving to the beautiful music. It is like a breath of fresh air! So much nicer than exercise DVD’s that have blaring rock music and the instructor shouting commands.
I hope that you will continue to blog, and I am spreading the word to all my friends about your wonderful exercise system.
Thank you so much!
Caroline