Never Ever Too Old

I first heard about T’ai Chi Chih when I was age 84. A good hiking buddy shared that she was teaching TCC and she felt great. Got my curiosity. At 85 I asked to learn and she gave me a lesson…. in a parking lot after a hike, since I live 40 miles away from her. Then she offered me instructional DVDs. One of the best decisions I ever made. On the first session I felt my hands tingling and thought, it was my age? Or something. But my teacher assured me this was the energy coming through the movements, and she insisted I follow the directions and stay in my feet.

Sometimes when I am going through the movements it feels like my hands and arms are moving through soft Jello or something similar. Wonderful. My fingers and hands tingle and a new light flows through my body. Although my teacher said not to practice at night, one time (and that’s all it took) I decided to do the exercises shortly before bed. Don’t try it. I fitfully tossed and tossed. Got up, read a book, watched TV, and finally fell asleep at 4am. I had no idea that the movements had energized me so much.

I’m hoping things might work out where I can go to one of the seminars. Learning TCC is one of the best decisions that I’ve ever made. Thank you, Justin Stone and Carmen, for projecting these classes and thank you, Sheryl, for sharing your experience with me.

Note from June’s teacher: She will be 86 next year and is an inspiration; some days I can barely keep up with her on the trail. June says not to let anyone chide you about your age: “You can be 90 years old at age 21 if you allow your mind and culture and circumstances to control you. My theory has been to enjoy your life as long as you breathe. I try to encourage others to forget the calendar.”