Action, Jackson

You've heard the expression, "Action dispels fear". Well, if you haven't, let me tell you it's true. Rather than stew about a problem, do something constructive, and your fear will get lost in the doing.

Well, I was afraid I was turning into a complete lump, so I decided to do something about it. I decided to take Tai Chi. I remember seeing those ancient Chinese elders together early in the morning, slowly and gracefully doing their Tai Chi in the park, thinking, yeah I'd like to learn that. It looks beautiful. I need to slow down, my life is too hectic. I had just finished venue managing at the 2010 Fringe Festival as well as preparing and performing my own shows, so life was just busy and harried. Yeah, that's the ticket, Tai Chi. Less stress, that's what I could use. Little did I know.

Having a disjointed schedule, not driving, and at the mercy of a bus schedule that is not conducive to actually getting anywhere from the hills, I took out my trusty Visa card, opened up my Amazon account and sent for an instructional DVD. Let's see...here we go, Tai Chi for Beginners. Well, that's me. Enter.

The DVD arrived last week and I popped it into the computer and started my first lesson. Well. Those Chinese are pretty crafty, because this stuff is not as easy as it looks. I'm sure once I get the hang of it, I'll look more like a graceful swan and less like a funky chicken. My husband thought he'd like to try it as well. All I can say is that his "wild flying goose" routine makes it look like the goose has had a run in with a 747 and broke one of its wings. That made me feel a little better. I figure there's still hope for me.

It's hard not to laugh at yourself when you can't stand on one leg and move your arms at the same time while following your instructor's directions. It's very character building. But if an 80 year old Chinese elder can do this, so can I. I think. Maybe my problem is I'm only part Chinese. That's probably the part that's graceful. The rest of me just has to catch up.

So I've been doing it every day, and after a couple of days my legs stopped shaking after an hour of "horse stance" and I can get through the routine til the end. Granted, I'm sweating like Mike Tyson at a spelling bee, but I can do it. So much for less stress. I'm afraid I'm still a bit uncoordinated, but I am starting to enjoy it.

So if you see someone in the park one day trying to master the "golden rooster stands on one leg" and looking more like a funky chicken in distress, that would be me. Don't bother to stop and say hello. No sense both of us laughing our heads off. I do need to preserve some dignity after all.