Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy

The transformation of a workaholic

My family was poor when I was a child. With 5 children to feed, my parents were always busy looking for ways to make more money. In Taiwan, there is a saying that goes "poor people don’t have the right to get sick". Unfortunately, my brothers, sisters and I got sick often. Every time we got sick we would have to take those bitter tasting folk remedies. My mom would give us a sugar cube and comfort us by telling us, "You need to endure the bitter taste. Bitter means that this remedy works, and you’ll get a sweet treat after you take the medicine."

Those encouraging words from my mother helped me through many of my life’s difficulties and setbacks. I was more willing to tackle those toughest jobs that others didn’t want to deal with. Therefore, I not only earned admiration from my boss but also got a raise during those years working. Not only did I work everyday till the office closed, bringing work home became part of a routine.

With all the money I earned from the hard work, my fear of poverty eased off. However, the psychological pressure I got from believing that I would only be successful if I worked very hard had made my shoulders stiff and turned me into a man without a smile. Life at home had also suffered as I brought my emotions home with me . I was always unhappy. I tried to unleash my pressure by looking for faults to pick on. At the end, my relationship between me and my wife and my kids became very tense, and my health deteriorated.

About 3 to 4 years ago, I suffered a heart attack while at work. I was rushed to the hospital. Even though I survived the heart attack, I was back working day and night trying to catch up with what I had left behind while I was away from work. As a result, I was diagnosed with cardiovascular blockage 4 months after I returned to work, and consequently I had to undergo another heart surgery.

Back to back surgeries put my family under a lot of stress. That’s when my younger brother introduced me to Tai Ji Men. I saw Tai Ji Men brothers and sisters chatting and smiling so happily at Tai Ji Men, it made me feel at home.

After becoming a disciple of Tai Ji Men, I always hear the masters’ words of wisdom in my mind. I learned to relax myself, to live happily and to love my family. Those were attitudes I had never had and learned before. I felt the master’s love around me whenever I practiced qigong or shared my stories of transformation with my Tai Ji Men brothers and sisters. The master encourages us to love ourselves and teaches us to stay healthy both physically and mentally. The love and wisdom relieved me from my anxiety for the future. I started to put those words of wisdom into my ordinary life and live a life of fulfillment and joy.

Now, when I get home from work, my wife always asks me "What makes you so happy?" This huge change in me is because I have learned the wisdom to "let go". Now, I enjoy the time I spend with my family. The number of times I have dinner at home with my family has increased from 1~2 times a week to 4~5 times a week. My son who is also a Tai Ji Men brother often says to me now, "Dad, quick, let’s have dinner. Can you help me with my homework and read me some stories after we finish?"

Last year, when the manager of the maintenance team left unexpectedly, I was ordered to take over his position and duties. However, I discovered that my colleagues at the maintenance team were considering leaving their job when they heard that I was coming. They thought that I was sent there to reorganize their team. When I arrived at the job, I had a heart to heart talk with everyone to show my concern. These "little talks" not only gave them comfort, but also helped me quickly understand any problems concerning maintenance of hardware at the branch office and the personnel management issues. A colleague that had already left the job even told me that if I had come and talked to them earlier he might not have quit.

Looking back on this year, on top of becoming healthier, I learned that because of love, I could let go of my fears and insecurity and live in the present. Not only am I more efficient in life and work, I’m also more loving and giving towards my family and colleagues. I believe, under the guidance of the master and the companionship of the brothers and sisters in Tai Ji Men, I will have more positive energy to enjoy a bright wonderful life.