The Vital Force Archive

Carmen L. Brocklehurst compares TCC practice to clarifying butter, where heated Chi brings ingrained anxious emotions and negative thinking to the surface to be scooped away, leaving clarity.

Donna Aldous describes starting winter classes at the Mesa Spirit RV Resort, growing past 30 participants in two weeks, charging $2, opening seated with Justin Stone's CD and ordering DVDs.

Deb Bertelsen describes moving from racing thoughts at the start of practice to the "no mind" she finds by Working the Pulley, and the answers that surface with unexpected clarity afterward.

Donna Aldous asked her poolside class what T'ai Chi Chih had done for them, and students reported less arthritis medication, easier flying, steadier footing on a bicycle and tingling fingertips from Pulling in the Energy.

Sr. Antonia Cooper describes the shift from exterior trying to interior flow, the "unclouded mind" her teacher urged, and the inner freedom that follows when practitioners fast from thinking, with four short poems appended.

Colleen Wuebben, diagnosed with Parkinson's at 52, describes moving from gym weights and cardio to a six-week beginners' class where her tremors eased and movement became sacred.

Sandy McAlister argues against shortening T'ai Chi Chih to TCC, recalling a New Jersey spring intensive where an article's initials were read aloud, and showing how precise wording like "soften the knees" teaches better.

Bette-B Bauer bikes to a Key West pier at dawn to practice, watching great blue herons, gulls and a brown pelican gather close, which her teacher Rita says the energy drew in.

Pam Towne names her own reasons for practising and teaching, from injuries that might have crippled her to the Oneness of group practice, then lists what teachers and future candidates gain from a multi-day intensive.

Jerry Juzdan, a 57-year-old retired teacher, imagines TCC bumper stickers, credits instructor Bill Moore, and describes practicing in pools and parks before choosing celery and carrots over Burger King.

Pauline Quimson-Tong takes three of Justin Stone's principles in turn, arguing that awareness is the root, that circularity means learning to receive as well as give, and that softness is grounded strength rather than limpness.

Roman Obara connects the Taoist idea of wu-wei to his own years of trying too hard, from learning the 19 movements in six weeks with Bill Moore to practising without attachment to results.

Pete Gregory answers Justin Stone's "Impatience" column with I AM, the Impatient Anonymous Mindset, a recovery-program parody tracing patience through grounding, regimen, skill and clarity toward peace and grace.

Raymond Sharp, a retired consulting actuary, returned to T'ai Chi Chih after gall bladder surgery and prostate cancer, and credits daily practice with teacher Kate Van Frank for restoring his energy, balance and serenity.

Responding to Justin Stone's November 2008 article on impatience, Larry Bloom traces how he stopped seeing traffic jams and long lines as the cause of his irritation, and found a yin and yang to impatience.

Fran Green, diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia and recovering from spinal tumor and neck fusion surgeries, began with seated TCC and now practices ten minutes daily for strength, balance and less pain.

Linda Braga writes from a four-day retreat on the Northern California coast themed on waiting, where T'ai Chi Chih served as morning practice and waiting became a way into neutral awareness.

Carol Nelson-Selby describes running a continuous drop-in class at a health club, arriving early to work with newcomers on weight shift, the t'an t'ien and physical limitations before the regulars arrive.

Justin Stone tells the story of Chuang Tsu, who drummed and sang after his wife's funeral, answering horrified friends that she came when it was time and left when it was time.

Dale Buchanan recounts running a TCC studio in Great Falls, Virginia, leaving teaching for health club management, then losing his job in Boca Raton and rebuilding classes through a website and Facebook.

Lorraine Lepine reports on the open Outreach Coordinator post, guidelines being drafted for teaching seniors, children and seated TCC, and the teacher reference materials project, followed by Justin Stone's letter objecting that T'ai Chi Chih is being made commercial.

Editor KG sets out the journal's reprint permission policy, including the one request she denied, explains why layouts keep articles on single pages, defends abbreviating T'ai Chi Chih as TCC, and asks readers for artwork.

David Schulberg's students report sleeping better and feeling less on edge, and he recalls outdoor practice in a New Jersey backyard and a park where squirrels, birds and a hawk joined in.

Dora Derzon credits Justin Stone's egoless preparation, from meditating with monks at 3 a.m. to refusing royalties from new teachers, and urges teachers to honor his wish that T'ai Chi Chih remain unorganized.

Amy Tyksinski offers two things to try in Push Pull: feeling the 60-40 split inwardly rather than in the hands, and the strength rising from the back heel as palms return to the breastbone.

John Valentine takes the Wicked Witch's skywriting from The Wizard of Oz as a mantra, distinguishing sincerity from seriousness and citing Justin's line that if it isn't fun, it's better left undone.

Sister Francis A Kay writes from eleven years teaching T'ai Chi Chih in Zimbabwe, including at the Harare Hospice Bereavement Center amid cholera, AIDS and forced evacuations, before returning to the US for heart surgery.

Diana Bahn recalls the 15-minute mock presentation at her 2002 teacher training, where moving Passing Clouds with the audience steadied her nerves and showed her the clarity practice brings without effort.

Chris Norkus contrasts his 1920s-style board-breaking martial arts training, which left him with cracked skin and bruised joints, with circulating chi in T'ai Chi Chih, and offers Earl Nightingale's million-dollar body as a way to explain intrinsic energy to Western students.

Nancy Jo Bleier stands up to practice when her mind chatters, then asks what clarity means in class: short sentences, a full weight shift, daily practice, and a student's note on stress relief.