Focus on Forms

         Last week, Sihing Csillag asked us what it is we focus on when we are asked to do our forms.  My response was that I pick parts of the form that I know I need to work on, and focus on those areas as they come up.  On top of this, I tend to pick areas I struggle with and place them in my weapon form that I create, so that I can get some extra practice in throughout the year.  

        This year, I've decided to work on my horse stance quite a bit, not just making sure I'm getting into a proper horse stance, but also making sure my stance is aligned during my transitions, which is something I seem to have a problem with.  I tend to have a wandering foot, either a bit forward or bit back in my stance.  In Lao Gar, which is my hand form for this year, what I'm currently working on a few parts.  The front thrust kick combined with crane wings, I videoed myself and noticed that my kick looked a bit more like a snap kick than a thrust, so I've been really trying to get that thrust timed with the crane.  I'm working on the sequence from catching and throwing the ball, the double knife hands, and the tiger claws.  Here my goal is to better align my supper and lower half.  Lastly, and this is recently, I'm working on the retreat to cat stance with, I'm actually not sure how to describe what I'm doing with my hands, but it is the part after the double pal block in Lao Gar 2.  I noticed here that something was feeling off, and I'm pretty sure it is that I'm a bit too high in my stance.

        Lot to think about in the form, and still a lot to think about even when I've broken down what I want to work on. I'm trying more and more to figure out on my own what needs to be done to make these techniques feel and look better.  Right now, I want them to feel better, and hope that they will look better as a result of the feeling I'm trying to achieve.  This harkens back to what Sifu Hayes used to tell us in the Monday/Wednesday morning class, and I'm going to paraphrase, about wanting to feel how a  master looks, and look how they feel.