Whole Body Intelligence

If I could name two major focuses, one would be about arm placements and the other on working with whole body. The arms, hence, are the "part" from the whole that needs more work from me. I realize that a strong core is what keeps everything else together, a sort of core that pulls outward in all directions. I am very familiar with the feeling, but in all honesty, it also takes a certain state of mind, attuned to the "on top of the world" improvisational feeling. The trick (while paradoxically not really "trying") is to be in that same state while in warm-ups and the rest of the class. There is a certain sense of feeling like da Vinci's Renaissance Man, where you are in your own crafted bubble that all your limbs stretch out to. The feeling is extraordinarily grounding (and liberating) to moving through 3-dimensional space.

The body has to work as one just as my fingers are to type this blog. To more solidly utilize my core and whole body is the goal here. Everyone's capable of reaching great heights rapidly. Humans, however, often feel they have to create some sort of permit to allow themselves to reach whatever goal they have. Being human too, this is probably my case as well. The key is having an openness to admit this and to strive to identify the self-imposed permits or to create more encompassing ones. The learning process is interesting and very nuanced. 

So, in short, relating to whole body and the core, what am I doing to re-train? More action without action first of all, then feeling arms beginning at the core (instead of at the shoulder or elbow), feeling the music from the core, opposition, and active listening.

The Mind/Body Status

Health for me is almost in the hobby territory, so I would consider myself both mentally and physically quite healthy. Twice a day, I take a special concoction tea that is composed of the Chinese herb Eucommia bark (which targets the neck, lower back, and knees, and serves to construct cartilage), along with China's Reishi mushroom also known as "Mushroom of Immortality" and "Mushroom of Spiritual Potency" or "10,000 Year Mushroom" to the Japanese. This is a potent medicinal mushroom that has imense anti-tumor properties as well as numerous other cell-rejuvination related properties.

As for resisting change, I keep ears open for helpful suggestions anyone may be having on any types of blocks or frigidity, for it may be as a tongue which can't taste itself. (Ego creates a feedback loop which can limit the world view; so to battle this, one must form authentic keenness for others. By doing so, presense becomes larger. As a general rule, there appears to be nearly an endless supply of energy for an individual whose objective is to go outside of him/herself. It is like some sort of transcendental grant.)

I'm doing very well, mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, and because of the nature of humanity to want "more", currently, I'm left with making "more" by, in a sense, extending "myself" (or rather, the self), and going outside of "myself" to spread positive or growth vibes to the outside world. This is often done by not doing much. It doesn't take much, often, to cause a ripple of positive energy in the world it appears.

On Being Present

Presense may be synonymous with awareness. It, however, does not mean letting the left brain attempt it. When first working on the identity dance, I found it useful to completely clear the mind first, for a blank slate is fertile soil for creation. Going with the first inclination is practical because one can have material to modify. The starting ground has to start somewhere, even if it is a silly ground. The important part is to simply start doing. The challenge may be the idea of a short time line to create the work, but it is very surprising what a person can come up with in a short amount of time (improvisation comes to mind). The trick is being able to remember all the details from the improvisation.

In my identity dance, I did felt presense, although I could have probably used even more of outside-of-myself action. The type where you may have almost taken the vantage point of the people watching you, nearly forgetting altogether you yourself were performing. For the next solo, I would attempt to encorporate many of the suggestions I received--more lines, more sustaining, and even more core.