Every day is different, as I do my Tai Chi by the sea. The tides change, the weather changes, and the company changes. Today the tide was way out, and so I was able to scramble round to the little beach near the jetty and stand in the mottled shade as I did the sequences.
Above my head, I felt shelter spreading out from this very old, many-branched pohutukawa tree.
And along the shore, visitors arrived. First the black stilts, having a good feed at the water's edge.
Then a couple, gliding along with poles on their surfboards.
And Princess Heron, stalking gracefully through the shallow water, and finding plenty of tasty morsels to eat.
She is so elegant, and I'm fascinated by the snaking movements of her very flexible neck.
Mine feels a bit stiff and awkward in comparison, but as I relax into the flow of the Tai Chi, I imagine a time when I might feel like a heron beside the sea.
Maybe I'll find some moves called 'Stalking the water's edge', or 'Lifting legs, snaking neck'. Maybe if I keep practising, I will become as expanded as the spreading pohutukawa and as delicately poised as this elegant visitor.
4 comments:
I am sure you already have a great deal of poise, dear Juliet. I have enjoyed your words here, your pictures as well, and all that sunshine, warmth, and beauty comes through to our winder here.
That's so kind, Penny. Thank you, and I'm glad to be sending some summer warmth (such as it is this year) your way.
I wonder how many people practising their Tai Chi that gnarly old Pohutukawa tree has sheltered and admired as it soaked up the moving Chi.
Trees remind us of the need to bend, flex, sway yet stay deeply grounded. What a great spot you have Juliet.
Yes, the tree is very much part of it all Lynley. I'm sure that pohutukawa has seen a lot.
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