a sudden and wonderful spring day

…followed by the cold and bitter winds of lingering winter. But what a day it was – perfectly timed to coincide with all-day outdoor practice in the park. And I am at last getting a grasp on this Chen style taiji form.

And as usual, my sense of accomplishment is balanced by a taste of foreboding. Getting a grasp of this new world, this strange and twisty way of spiraling and corkscrewing, is relatively easy. Working it deeply into my body is not.

This is a group that meets occasionally in the park for half-days or full days of intensive practice, a valuable supplement to my regular training. Each of us is responsible to guide our own development / choose what to practice. Old material is reviewed deeply; new material tends to come in large bursts. Mr. T doesn’t usually teach in large surges during regular classes, so this is a special opportunity to delve into new material.

But then there is the responsibility to maintain it all and to integrate it into my overall curriculum. That may be the hardest part, but it is also rewarding.

I am surrounded by youngsters about half my age and find this to be highly motivating. I also take some quiet delight when they compliment me on becoming even more flexible in my stretching (this 40-something body isn’t done yet!).

We are surrounded by all manner of people. The local karate group who yell “osu” a little too loudly and too often. The young baseball kids, sitting through a 20-minute post-practice lecture by an angry coach. I joked that American parents would step right up and take their kids home in the middle of the droning. “Hm, it might be a bit much for 8- and 10-year-olds” agreed one Japanese friend. It reminded me of the pre-practice 20 minute ramblings of ancient and Most Venerable iaido senseis before any all-Tokyo iaido event.

Here in the park, there are others: various drama groups practicing their routines. Six very geeky photographers (all male) and one rather young and underdressed female. The dog society, who bring their identical little weiner dogs out to yap at the same time and place each weekend.

This park is near a university, and many student groups are out doing their thing, so the distractions are many. But I was most caught by the yo-yo guy, running through endless routines on his own, maybe the only one in the park NOT attached to a group. I felt that he was doing something very similar to what we were – each of us in our own world of motion, practicing alone (within the group), finding pleasure in seeking correct motion, doing it again when things don’t go well.

And all of us out on that fine spring day sandwiched between long days of cold.