Awake New York

Awake New York

Every morning on my way to high school on the lower east side of Manhattan, I would walk past a housing facility that was specifically designed for Chinese residents.

I can recall when the building was being constructed and how beautiful the place had been transformed. The trees gave off a serene feel and the black and red signs which I couldn’t read (smile) along with the art around the facility was nice to look at.  

However, what caught my eye as I looked to my left and what drew my curiosity every time I passed by was that there was the cutest group of Chinese men and women, mostly elderly,  in their yard practicing Tai Chi. I couldn’t help but to stare at them and watch their movements as they moved their legs sometimes in ways I couldn’t (laugh) and stretching out their arms in harmony like birds, turning left and right as if pushing the waves in then pushing them out  and circling in the wind with their hands that displayed the strength in their physique. The looks on their face were very calm and serene as some meditated and some of them were humorous depending on the moves they’d make.

Tai chi is a form of martial arts that the Chinese practice. There are several types of Tai Chi such as the Sun, Wu, Hao and Chen styles (Lam) which consists of extreme strengths and stances that are lower Sun or higher Chen movements that work best for people with various physical demands (Lam). They practice this because it is a spiritual and physically therapeutic form of tapping into their “ying, yang” nature in order to bring balance to their everyday lives.

Many times as I’ve passed by with my coffee in hand, I’ve glanced over and find myself smiling and admiring their positive energy and feel good over all.

Work Cited

Lam, Paul MD

“History of Tai Chi.”taichiforhealthinstitute.org.ND

Tai Chi Productions 2007.Web 26 Aug 2017