Sign of the Times

Tai Chi is looming large in my life right now, especially for the next few days. Chaos is too kind a word to describe them.
Retreat to ride tiger. Ahh, my chi is so much better now.

For Your Health

The Blooms Days festival is an annual fundraiser for the University of Tennessee Gardens, the outdoor laboratory for the UT Department of Plant Sciences. There's food, bluegrass music, gardening lectures, plants for sale, and demonstrations of taijiquan by the Knoxville Chapter of the Taoist Tai Chi Society, of which I am a member. Taijiquan is a "low impact" form of martial arts used for its health benefits. Here, members are going through a "set" of 108 movements. (You won't see me in this set of course, because I was behind the camera!). The aims of the Taoist Tai Chi Society are very simple: to make tai chi available to all, to promote the health-improving qualities of tai chi, to promote cultural exchange, and to help others. I've been practicing tai chi for two years now, and can say that I have better balance and flexibility than when I started - and also get to enjoy good company.