What’s my left hand doing?

        Harmonizing our left with our right is part of our foundational learning; however, throughout Tai Chi, and for sure in our school forms, my left hand doesn’t always want to cooperate with the rest of my body.

        It’s an issue that keeps cropping up across all sections of Tai Chi, and what I’ve noticed, is that it comes up when a subtle movement is required.  I struggle because I either want to get it too involved or almost not at all.  Sifu Dennis and I discussed this in yesterday’s class, and it is something I really want to focus on.  Her biggest piece of advice to me was in the release of that hand.  I do find I hold tension in that hand, especially when I’m not quite sure what to do with it.  I know this is an issue that crops up elsewhere in my forms too. Sometimes that darkest hand just floats idly or acts as a fixture instead of getting involved and harmonizing with what my right side is doing.  Bigger movements I’m generally okay with though, because I have a clear intent. Those smaller or subtler movements though become quite muddled, hence the issue.

       I’ve also been working on softening while still having intensity and the release of power at the end.  As of now, when I think soften, I tend to lose some of that intensity and I also fail to fully release my power.  I had a discussion with Sifu Brinker on this after being prompted from our exercise in last Saturday’s Kao Shi class.  It’s going to take a while and a lot of conscious effort to reframe my intent and my ideas around intensity.  I’m confident I can achieve this.