True Love March
Mei-Yi Wang-Jiang 2016-10-16
My daughter-in-law had always asked me to join Tai Ji Men, but I had always refused her. "Why do I even bother to practice qigong at this old age! I don’t need it!" I worried there might be conflict between practicing qigong and my faith, and I believed my health would not improve at this age. My son and his wife would persuade me. "Mom, we feel bad seeing you sick and miserable. We wish we could take away your pain!" I kept hearing those words for twenty some years, but one day it finally struck me that I should listen to them. I was 80 years old when I joined Tai Ji Men.
On my first day, I told Shifu, "Everyone is able to sit on the floor, but I am not able to do that." He said, "No problem. I’ll have them bring you a chair." I also told him, "I have many health problems." He said, "Rest assured! Let go of your burdens. Take it slow." I felt very happy and touched by those words, and tears immediately ran down my cheeks. I came to him with a walker, and he reassured me and encouraged me to practice day and night to improve my health. He also said I would not need a walker in the future.
He wanted me to have confidence in myself and let go of my worries. So I listened and began to practice qigong diligently and changed my mentality. I rid my past belief that my health was terrible and changed my old habit of staying inactive. I started to get on and off a bus and walk. In the past, getting a bus ride used to be a hassle, and my feet would hurt badly; to get on a bus I needed the person behind me to give me a push and support my weight. Now I am able to visit my brother’s family on a hill. When the climb up the hill became a bit difficult, I recalled Shifu’s words: "Be brave. Be happy. Let go!" Then with a walking cane, I slowly climbed to my brother’s house, which I hadn’t visited in 2 years. It was a pity that I couldn’t do so in the past, but now I did it! My sister-in-law and nephew were very surprised to see me. "How did you get up here? What medicines do you take? How did your legs get so strong?" they asked. Frankly, all I did was practice Tai Ji Men Qigong.
I had never thought that I would be able to leave my walker behind. I am 85 now and walk freely on my own – without a cane. I even danced onstage with 6-7 year olds at the Chinese New Year Gathering this year, which was unimaginable! At first I was reluctant to perform at the event with young children at Tai Ji Men as I was asked to dress and dance like a little child. But I remembered Shifu told me to have a pure heart and courage, so I accepted the invitation to perform and radiated happy energy to the audience all the while, forgetting that I was already in my 80s. I was very happy – I had never been happier.
In the past I had to take sleeping pills daily to fall asleep. Ever since I started practicing qigong, I have been able to sleep through the night and no longer need the pills, which I had depended on for 30 years. I always wear a smile now that I have regained my health. My neighbors, in-laws, and my other son’s family also joined Tai Ji Men after seeing my improvement.
Now, I am able to happily attend church every week and chat with the brothers and sisters in our church basement. They asked me, "What kind of energy made you change from being dependent on a walker to walking freely on your own?” I am lucky that I found Christianity very early in life. But coming to Tai Ji Men brought Shifu into my life. Over the past few years, my health has improved significantly. I no longer suffer from pain, and my family no longer worry about me. There is more love and laughter in my family now. I even go to various places such as schools and companies in Taiwan with other Tai Ji Men members to promote the movement of An Era of Conscience, spreading joy and love to the world. “Love is tolerance. Love is trust. Love is hope. . . . Love never stops!"
