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It
Takes Courage by Karin Collins |
| Says Kim,
“It takes courage to do Tai Chi.” David Whyte in his book Crossing the Unknown Sea says, “The word courage arises from the old French cuer, meaning heart. To be courageous means at bottom to be heartfelt. To begin with we take only those steps which we can do in a heartfelt fashion and then slowly increase our stride as we become familiar with the direct connection between our passion and our courage.” An unnameable passion and genuine need brought me to Embrace The Moon to find the way back to my body, my self. Perhaps it was my own act of courage. Every moment of class demands courage and integrity. A difficult path to stay in, at least ankle-deep, let alone fully. It may take courage to start Tai Chi, to continue practicing, to allow it into everyday life but all the courage one may ever need is available in return. Stephen Mitchell says in his translation of the Tao Te Ching, number 35: When you look for it there is nothing to see. When you listen for it, there is nothing to hear. When you use it, it is inexhaustible. I said to a friend how grateful I was to have learned lessons from this practice to help make sense and stabilize the day-to-day traumas one experiences and to trust the horizon to provide an answer. At the time I didn’t say the word courage but that is at the bottom of every lesson and is the compelling force that assisted and guided me through a fireball year 2000, the year of the dragon. Being a part of this next anniversary of Embrace The Moon shows me a path of courage, both demanding and giving. Says Coleman Barks through his translation of Rumi’s The Sunrise Ruby: …The ruby and the sunrise are one. Be courageous and discipline yourself. Completely become hearing and ear, And wear this sun-ruby as an earring. Work. Keep digging your well. Don’t think about getting off from work. Water is there somewhere. Submit to a daily practice. Your loyalty to that is a ring on the door. Keep knocking, And the joy inside Will eventually open a window And look out to see who’s there. |