The T’ai Chi Chih Intensive in Evanston, Illinois

Forty-three eager teachers and students gathered in Evanston, Illinois on September 26th to delve deeper into their T’ai Chi Chih practice. Ed Altman took the group through the movements, stressing the principles of shifting the weight and softness, and demonstrating how they manifest throughout T’ai Chi Chih. Ed continually stressed the simplicity of T’ai Chi Chih, how actually there are very few things to remember, but doing these few things allows all other parts of the movements to “fall into place.”

After a three-hour morning session, everyone took a nice lunch break in sunny (and rather unseasonably warm!) downtown Evanston, and then returned for a three-hour afternoon session. Many of the students and teachers attending came up to say how much they were gaining from Ed’s clear and thorough instruction on the movements. We want to thank all those who attended!

Some of the points I remember the most:

• STICK WITH THE PRINCIPLES: Shifting weight, softness.

• Rocking Motion is not an up/down movement but a forward/back movement.

• Be aware of the back heel during yinning & yanging; make sure that it stays very close to the ground even when the weight is shifted forward. (Incidentally, I have found that greater awareness of “low heels” increases the feeling of groundedness.)

• Observe tension and ask yourself “can it be released?”

• What if you were carrying a silvery dandelion in Carry the Ball?

• Allow the knees to soften and shift the weight forward slightly for the beginning of Wrist Circles Taffy (rather than try to “go up on the toes”).

• Let your stillness (or your focus on the soles of the feet) be so strong that other people are drawn into stillness (or into clear focus on the soles of the feet).

We were happily surprised that the event went smoothly and required (strangely? or maybe not so strangely) little effort to put together. Both Amy Tyksinski and I (Amy Hackenberg) would be happy to discuss necessary preparations for organizing such an event with anyone who is interested, and we both encourage T’ai Chi Chih teachers in other areas to do so. There is another intensive scheduled in California in February.

Amy and I are especially grateful to Ed and Noël for coming to Chicago for this event. As I said when I introduced Ed and Noël, they are my original teachers, and so I am eternally grateful to them because I can’t imagine living my life without doing T’ai Chi Chih.

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I was grateful for another breakthrough in my understanding of TCC. It regards the slight rise on the balls of the feet (for Bird Flaps its Wings, Pulling Taffy – Wrist Circles Variation, Light at the Top of the Head/Light at the Temples, and Joyous Breath) as a forward weight shift instead of lifting. These movements are now much less strenuous, and my calves and ankles do not get so tired.

A smaller enlightenment occured very privately as we practiced Pulling Taffy – Anchor Variation and Pulling Taffy – Wrist Circles Variation, seeing for the first time the subtlety of their forward/back weight shifts and realizing that these two movements combine both forward/back and side to side displacement of weight. I love these movements even more and am grateful to their inventor. I teach them with real delight.

I was also very grateful for the learning on Pulling Taffy – Anchor Variation to fan the pigeon-toed foot back into position so as not to put unnecessary pressure on the knee. This movement really flows now. It was a very full day and I so enjoyed being so close to the beach.

– Mark Moloney
St. Louis, MO