Poems and a Beginning
Poems by Richard Rooke

(A veteran member of Cold Mountain Internal Arts, Richard Rooke is a published poet. See the May 4, 2016 blog installment for his advice for beginners.)
Tai Chi Prayer
Allow your weary body rest
From the hamster-wheel of the world
The tangle of daily expectation
That is the best
Let the heated body settle
From all exertion and be still
Listen to the organs vibrate and slow
Let time have its fill
Direct the mind to stop
Its flashing vibrations and be calm
Let the punishing world pass
And give no alarm
Be one with stillness calmness
Let slow breath descend
Benevolence anchor your being
And have no end
Fan Dance
A raven wing of fine black hair
suspended motionless in air
opened fans a gunshot storm
fluid shapes coalescent form
still point a rat-a-tat of feet
fans clack sound and silence meet
a surging run forward hands push air
stillness a settling senses flare
fire-blaze of arcs and pointed toe
thrust and retreat a weave to and fro
steps a silken ripple stately and slow
the pavane joins the river in flow
the whirlpool subsides fans close and rest
now bow to the audience you are the guest
step from the pattern leave no trace
dancing is a sleepwalk in space
natural dynamic as a lightning storm
and when tempered shaped the essence of form
Tai Chi and Poetry
The form is there
Waiting to be found
Consciousness the subconscious
concentration and awareness
all contribute
The body responds
In a variety of ways
A ripple a flow
sometimes a crescendo
slow motion movements
in life at full speed
Some things are subtracted
some things excised
some things added
or refined
Every moment
you are different
so the finished trope
is always elusive changeable
You clarify as best you can
You never know
if you have approximated
the eel of perfection
An Ordinary Soul
Lean and grey
a focus in concentration
she hugs her sword
when it flashes
arcs and arabesques
are swallows in the air
the sword hand slows pauses
its music almost majesty
a piano arpeggio erupts
the steel is swift mesmeric
flower heads and hearts
scattered diced skewered
the movement ends
in hushed silence
and an ordinary soul emerges
renewed from performance
smiling quietly
capable of the extraordinary
Jane Fridrich: Tai Chi Beginnings and Practice

(An enthusiastic student of the martial arts for many years, Jane Fridrich is an associate-member of Cold Mountain Internal Arts. As discussed in her article, her martial arts career was inspired by a desire to acquire better self-defence skills. She has practiced Yoshinkan Aikido, Chen's Cannon Fist at Cold Mountain, and presently studies Chen-style Taijiquan at Stone Lantern Martial Arts in Guelph with Sifus James Saper and Jack Yan. For years she and her partner Chris have provided technical help at the Cold Mountain New Year event!)
My motivation to get into martial arts had a defining moment: I was crouched at the side of the road, a lug wrench in my hands trying not to panic. It was raining, and I couldn’t see the lugs properly to change the tire on my car. I was trying not to panic not just because having a flat on the 403 in the dark meant the traffic was whipping by inches away, but because a serial killer actually had been caught in southern Ontario at that time, preying on women. Two cars stopped and fearing the worst, I rebuffed each kind offer with the lug wrench tightly grasped in my hands. After I got the tire changed, I went home and decided I didn’t want to live fearing the motivations of strangers. It was a useless attitude.
I joined Aikido in the fall of 1993 and loved training. Ten years flew by, and I eventually injured my back to the extent I couldn’t continue in aikido. I tried out several Chinese martial arts for about a year and settled on tai chi as Steve Higgin’s student. Being an ex- aikidoka was a big hindrance at the beginning. I could follow the motions but could not shift my weight the tai chi way. I was always too far forward; my feet were too close together: I had no clue how to generate the kind of strength Steve was demonstrating. I was really confused.
But my body liked it. It started to heal. More than the physical benefits, it had some great mental benefits. Doing tai chi forms is mind-clarifying in a different way than Aikido. Both are energizing and meditative, yet tai chi makes me more feel more lucid. This benefit has become kind of addictive.
I practice almost everyday now. Aches and pains are ameliorated and the stretching of deep tissues is so helpful. I can feel more power now in the form and love doing push hands to experiment with that power.
People at Cold Mountain, and at Stone Lantern where I train now, are always helpful. Egotism is pretty rare in tai chi. It’s great to train with people who are your peers and not be distracted by etiquette and egos of a belt system of rank. I’m 51 and still love martial arts, and especially tai chi. It’s just pure joy to practice. My goal now is, just to practice and discover new aspects of the art.
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