Qigong classes, ya'll come on

Spring


The water murmurs
In the old stone well,
And, a rippling mirror,
Gives back the clear blue sky.
The river roars,
Swollen with the late rains of spring.
On the cool, jade-green grass
The golden sunshine
Splashes.


Sometimes, at early dawn,
I climb
Even as far as Lien Shan Temple.
In the spring
I plow the thirsty field,
That it may brink new life.
I eat a little
I work a little,
Each day my hair grows thinner,
And, it seems,
I lean ever a bit more heavily
on my old thornwood cane.
                          Liu Tzi-Hui
                          Sund dynasty, A.D. 960-1278

Last week I taught to an acupuncture friend of mine, for the very first time, The 5 Element Flow. He answered many of my questions.

This basic flow is made up of 11 movements. Here are some of them.

Buddha Holds Up The Sky is about being inspired

The Fountain is about inner fortitude and ambition

Tree Swaying helps us through strength and flexibility to move forward, even through obstacles

Cloudy Hands keeps our hearts clear to receive compassionate energy

Pebble In The Pond is about bringing everything back to center

One reason I love Qigong is that the names of the movements are so beautiful and the function of the movements so positive and interesting.

Check out this video. I wanted to show you one of the movements - I chose Cloudy Hands. It was the toughest one for me to learn. Notice how while doing this movement the nose stays in line with the belly button. And notice how first you shift your weight to one side and your hands and upper body follow. It's a very calming movement to do because your lower body and arms move but your head stays pretty still - this encourages your mind to also be still.

Notice my knees are in a little horse stance - there's a little bend to the knees. Keep your knees springy.

May dates for Qigong classes at my home (815 Stoneleigh Road, Balt 21212) in Towson. I'm not certain that I will be continuing for the first 2 weeks in June.

Our Qigong teacher encouraged us to teach to friends before coming back for our second week in June. At the end of that week I hope to be certified as a Level I Qigong teacher.

7 - 8 a.m.
May 1, 4, 8, 11, 15, 18, 25

You are welcome to join us for any number of classes - one or all or anything in between - and to shower afterward if need be.

Please email me at donnaraesmith@yahoo.com if you are planning to attend.

Hope you are all staying warm now that our true April weather has returned. I had fun putting my cozy Uggs back on this morning. We need to invent some summer uggs.

Anyway, have a good one.

Namaste,
Donna Rae

The inner sun.......

Photo taken on my walk this a.m.

As a microcosm, human beings embody all the phases within themselves. Within each thing is contained all things. In the seed is the tree; in the tree is the forest. . .  Life forms are stations for the reception and transmission of forces, through which all are nourished. Each thing exists to nourish all others and , in return, to be nourished itself. In this manner, each kingdom of nature serves to receive and transmit life. . . These forces are not all material, but include subtle energies of. . . a spiritual nature. . . In the inner world, a central sun is also the source of life. The inner sun is our true self. . . 


                                                                           Lad And Frawley, The Yoga of Herbs
                              (This reading came from one of my Qigong books, Between Heaven and Earth)

Fire (sun), earth, air, water - all transmitting life force to you and me and all of life

Having spent quite a bit of time practicing Qigong with the intention of improving my physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health and teaching others, I wanted to take a few minutes to reflect on one way this practice has changed the way I feel so far.


I have for many years felt physically centered and strong. And even though I've been practicing yoga and teaching yoga it is not until recently that I feel a true internal connection to my own spirit (or shen in the Qigong tradition). For me this is an internal fire within that flows outwardly from the heart center, around the body and back to the heart. It feeds the energy reservoirs that then feed the meridians. 


This is how I perceive the "inner sun". Inner sun can absorb energy from the world around us (from nature - water and sunlight for example) and improve our health. 


Receiving and restoring energy is very important to keep shen in balance.


How do you restore yourself? Through what do you receive life?


Next time you're out in nature take a minute to take a few deep abdominal breaths while you gaze at a beautiful tree or flower. Focus your attention on that moment to nourish your "inner sun". Know that not only are you being nourished, you are also, through your exhalation, nourishing the trees and other things that grow in nature. You give C02 and receive 02, it's the natural way of life. The energy you receive from nature helps to keep you healthy and strong. The energy you transmit to nature keeps it healthy and strong.


Bring your attention to this process, it will make the energy exchange even stronger. 

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A quick dish, good and nutritious 

Margaret's Italian Delight

I was visiting with a friend Monday and told her I just couldn't come up with anything inspirational to cook for dinner. This is what she told me to do - 

*Cut eggplant about 1/4 inch thick (not thin and not too thick), brush with a little olive oil (small eggplant are sweeter and tastier than larger ones; I used 2)

*Bake on 350 until lightly brown

*Like a lasagna layer the following:

 Eggplant          Breadcrumbs (1 cup course) + Cheese (2 cups)       Flavorful Tomato Sauce (big jar)

*With a fork, poke some holes through the layers

*Pour beaten eggs (I used 4) over the dish, allowing the egg to seep down in and even allow some to go around the sides

*Bake 320 until lightly brown

Yummm - and so easy. Because we eat only vegan cheese which is no where near as yummie as cow cheese, to make it a little more interesting this is how I'm going to alter the recipe for next time.

*Chop up some artichoke hearts and maybe some jalapeno peppers and put a scoop in the center of the eggplant

*Use some fresh herbs

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Hope you're having a peace-filled day with lots of good sun and good deep breaths,

Donna Rae

Meet Loretta!!

THIS IS LORETTA - She's been practicing yoga for 11 years!

I first met Loretta when she came to yoga, yo-pi-chi and Pilates classes I was teaching. She is strong, centered and as you can see in the photos, very capable. She is the type of student all teachers love to have in class because when something needs extended explanation, the Loretta-types serve as good models. 


Loretta inspires me so much as I approach 60.


She is 72 years old and practices yoga 5 times a week, Pilates about 3 times a week, enjoys walking (20-30 min) and dances twice a week. Loretta belongs to a dance group called The Ragtime Troupe. They perform at senior centers, nursing homes, and The Gallagher House, an organization for people with developmental disabilities.


When I asked Loretta the two words that describe how she feels at her age she said, confident and more relaxed.


She says yoga and Pilates are a necessary part of her life. she enjoys the benefits of letting go, balance and flexibility. Both disciplines have made a great difference in her life - she claims being aware of her posture redefines her body, reduces stress and gives her energy.


In addition to working full time for the European Space Agency at the Space Telescope Science Intitute, she teaches yoga and Pilates at The Halstead at Guilford to young and old. She says she enjoys encouraging everyone to do some gentle stretching, do some yoga and strengthen the core with Pilates. She loves ballroom dancing. 


She also has two miniature dachshunds.


We all have health challenges and Loretta is not exempt for that, she has osteoporosis. 


Osteoporosis can be a very debilitating condition. The less you do, the more advanced it can become.


Not Loretta. In addition to all  the great activities above, she recently starting weight training four times a week with a trainer.


Loretta is 72 years old, looks 50 and acts like a 21 year old. That's how I want to be when I'm 72.


*********************************************************************************


I'm spending about 3 hours a day studying Qigong. 


I'd like to be certified to teach by the end of June.


Man, I don't know what I was thinking??????


The Yi Jing (Book of Changes) was written 1122 B.C. - it was probably the first Chinese book related to Qi (life force energy). 


I've got a heck of a lot of catching up to do!!! Yikes. 

This is Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming, he wrote one of my books - The Root of Chinese Qigong

Here is Horse Stance. it is the most common stance used by Qigong practitioners. It is used to develop your root, center and balance, as well as strengthening the legs. 

Both legs share your weight equally. The width of your legs should be comfortable for you. The most important thing in Qigong is to find your center and feel relaxed. Your body must be relaxed for the qi to flow. 

In horse stance you are pressing downward toward the earth and pushing upward toward the heavens.

Grow an invisible root beneath your feet. Your mind (Yi) must communicate with the ground. 

I am not kidding - this really works.

Remember a trees root is very strong because it has many branches and spreads out far to the sides. You must do the same thing, spread your roots to the sides as well as downward. 

Once you have built your root, you can consider being centered and balanced. You can be centered physically and you can be centered mentally. When you are centered physically, a vertical line from your center of mass falls between your feet, so your root comfortably supports your weight. Being centered mentally is a matter of feeling. You are mentally centered, you can be physically balanced.

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Time for me to rock out of this blog. I have promised myself to write only one hour a day and I have about 40 seconds left.

Let me know if you want to come over for Horse Stance and other QiGong. I think it might change your life. Well, at least you might feel stronger and look stronger - like Loretta.

This is horse stance - a very low one. Yikes!

Thanks Loretta. Namaste to you.

5 seconds, 4, 3, 2, .......

xo

You know what I'm saying........

Hi Folks!

It's a beautiful day here in Baltimore. The grass is bright green, the skies are clear blue and the spring flowers are full of all kinds of color. When I went for a walk this morning I really soaked in all that powerful energy. That's one of the things I learned in qi gong training - our relationship with nature can be very nurturing and beneficial for health and longevity.

The trip to Santa Cruz started off a little crazy.

This is exactly how I felt ....... for awhile. You know what I'm saying?

The flight from BWI to Salt Lake City was fairly uneventful. Salt Lake City to San Jose- a different story.

I got my fav seat on Southwest - front row, aisle. Got all settled in with a nice seat neighbor when a very disheveled woman with wild blond hair and red lipstick that was smeared all over came aboard. She had priority boarding and she had two giant bags with her filled with food and all sorts of things a jimble-jamble.

A little like this

The first thing she told the flight attendant was that the ticket employee when she checked in kept her credit card. What was she going to do without her credit card? "You know what I mean?" she said.

The very nice and patient flight attendant (f a) said she wasn't sure if she could locate it for her but she would try. Meanwhile, the woman found, after taking everything out of the two bags, her card. I saw a look of relief and a little concern on the f a's face.

Then she couldn't find her syringe to take some insulin. She put her light on and told the f a who immediately asked if she would be all right without it; if not there was still time to get off the plane (I think I saw her fingers crossed behind her back). "I hope I'll be," the passenger said.... and then "You know what I mean?" which she had the habit of saying very loudly.

As we were taking off she put her light back on. "I need a barf bag, hurry!" she yelled as she rummaged impatiently through the little magazine carrier on the wall in front. The f a got out of her seat and quickly brought her two big kitchen size plastic bags.

Meanwhile, the woman sitting next to this passenger got up right when the plane left the ground and went into the bathroom to barf. I did not realize anyone could do this. The f a told her she couldn't stop her but she had to tell her that for safety reasons it is the policy of the airlines that everyone be in their seats for take off.

We made it through take off but it was questionable at times. Now my fav seat was turning into something else.

Once we were up she put her light back on and requested her bags of food. The f a politely got them down but I noticed that the f a was getting a little quiet and even looked a little funny.

Our f a starting at this point to look like this

So, because I'm an optimistic person I said to myself that things would probably smooth out now. Nope.

Interesting passenger (i p) went through all the various items of food, almost black bananas, sandwiches that I'm pretty sure were about a week old (I think I saw green mold) until she found a giant plastic cool whip container. She opened the top and we were all immediately met by a very strong aroma of tuna fish.

In less than 15 seconds I heard a big ole plop and in a fraction of a second I had slimy, liquidy tuna fish all over my pants, my butt, my book (John S's East of Eden - fabulous book), my hand and even on my nice neighbor.

Now you have to understand that the first thing I thought was that she had barfed all over me, projectile style. But no, it was just tuna. Just tuna. Smelly, stinky, slimy tuna.

Then we hit some turbulence and the fasten seatbelt sign went back on. The pilot came on and told everyone to stay seated.

I p ignored the pilot.

Trying to be helpful, she took some old napkins out of her bag and started rubbing the tuna in to the leg of my pants.

I started feeling bad because I could feel NO compassion for this needy woman. NONE. I started thinking, what would Pema Chodrin do? She would probably get up and try to help clean up the mess. Jesus and Mary and Mother T would too.

Meanwhile, the f a is completely ignoring the situation. All this tuna is everywhere.

The woman that went into the bathroom came out, took one look at what was happening and went right back into the dag-gone bathroom.

Then I started thinking, what if they are terrorists? One is creating the distraction and the other one is positioning the bomb right inside the toilet.

I p kept apologizing and rubbing the tuna in. Now both of my legs are dripping with tuna. I could feel the liquid even on the skin of my legs.

I did the best job I could cleaning up once we were allowed to leave our seats. Still smelled really bad.

The  i p noticed the f a wasn't helping and not making eye contact, etc. She started getting mad.

F a brought us all drinks, including i p. Then she started talking to us about how the flight is so short, they used to not serve drinks and i p for some reason thought she was talking about her. She confronted her. Bad scene. F a just said, "I really don't know what you're talking about."

I p then kept saying, "You know what I'm saying." She said it too loud. I started to get scared.

That's me.

Where is my compassion? Holy smokes. I'm toast. No compassion. So I started asking Gandhi for some guidance.

None came.

The f a announced she was coming around to pick up trash. I carefully put my little cup in the bag and witnessed the i p throw her full cup at the f a.

Wow - I thought.

F a completely ignored the woman which made her even madder. When she got to her f a serving area she started crying. She called for help from the back and one of the others came up to be with her. She had had enough. She made a phone call. We landed and as soon as the doors opened, she stepped off the plane.

I was the next one out and couldn't help but notice the f a talking to a state trooper right outside the plane.

Ah Oh! Big trouble was about to happen. I hurried to baggage claim and to my driver who would swoop me away to fun and funky Santa Cruz.......but

My baggage was lost. I was sure it was the karmic wheel turning on me - no compassion, no bag.

So my driver took me to my little hotel where lovely Anne greeted me with open arms. I was so certain my bag would arrive, it was only 2 p.m.

I went for a walk, found a cute cafe, had some tea.

And then I started obsessing over trying to go to sleep without my fan and WITHOUT MY CREAMS. Oh God, what was I going to do without my creams and my fav old jammies?

My creams are so moist and delicious and lovely when I sink down in my bed at night. So cozy.

The older I get the more creams I seem to need. Special eye cream, special serum, neck cream, night cream, scrunchy to put my hair up while I'm taking a shower, clean underwear, lotion, mouth guard so I don't crack my teeth, water pick, ear plugs. I could go on and on.

How was I going to ever get to sleep?

Then I started thinking about all the women all over the world that struggle to survive - just to eat and be safe. Women in caves trying to protect their children and other people's children form war lords. How they manage to live, what their struggles are.

And I didn't think I could get to sleep one single night because of my LOST CREAMS.

What is wrong with me?

But I did manage to and the next day my bag arrived safely.

And the first day of qi gong teacher training our teacher was lecturing about taoism (my beliefs parallel taoism) and Lao Tz and the Tao ti ching. I was still occasionally thinking about what might very well be a lack of compassion.

He asked if there were any questions and I raised my hand to ask how compassion plays a role in Taoism. He said that compassion is an important part of Taoism. He quoted Lao

“Simplicity, patience, compassion.
These three are your greatest treasures.
Simple in actions and thoughts, you return to the source of being.
Patient with both friends and enemies,
you accord with the way things are.
Compassionate toward yourself,
you reconcile all beings in the world.” 
― Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching


I'm screwed, I thought.


Then he went on to say - but, an even greater teaching in Taoism is that there be a balance between compassion and indifference. Not all situations should be responded to with compassion. Sometimes compassion can be inappropriate. Sometimes the more compassionate thing to do is to do nothing. That is the yin and yang, the balance.


Whew! I thought. I'm saved!

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I learned a lot in Santa Cruz. There were about 15 students - all ages, 3 men. Three others were nurses, some massage therapists, holistic nutritionist, academia-ics, a tree surgeon from London, folks from Canada and all over the states. 


Heading back at the end of June for the second week of Level I Teacher Training. 


For anyone who is interested - I am hoping to teach (as a student teacher - I am not certified yet) in my home a group class - the 5 Element Flow Qi Gong. It takes about 40 minutes. It's a series of movements that strengthens the organs, calms the CNS and directs energy through the meridians.  It is not difficult to follow. If you are interested please shoot me an email 


donnaraesmith@yahoo.com


so that we can work out some times that might work. I get up very early so I am open to teach any time from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

There is no fee associated with this class.


If you have friends that you think might be interested, please invite them. 


Namaste my friends and much love, I know you know what I'm saying!


Donna Rae


p.s I hope i p is not your sister of cousin or friend. If she is, I'm sure there is a logical explanation for her behavior - maybe her blood sugar was 350.

What' happening?

Hi Folks,

Just a quick check in.

Qi Gong training in Santa Cruz was amazing - there aren't words to describe what a complete experience it was. We were in class 8-9 and sometimes 10  hours a day with study to do at night, 4-5 of those hours were spent doing Qi Gong.

My shoulder actually improved in terms of range of motion and strength while I was gone. Now I'm back in PT and doing a ton of exercises to help stabilize it further.

A few days after returning to Baltimore we headed to Florida. Our oldest daughter Sarah and her family arrived almost immediately. We'll have the weekend to clean up and close up the condo to return to Balt.

So, I'm hoping to resume blogging next week.

Meanwhile, if you watch the above video, you'll see what I'm up to today. Sarah and Al have headed to  Key West, Henry is on a plane to Baltimore for a few days and I'm savoring every minute with this little man.

Namaste friends and sending much love,
Donna Rae