When this time of year rolls around, it's hard not to cast an eye about you and consider all of the things for which one is grateful. Certain smells in the air, seeing faces we haven't seen in awhile, the sense of Nostos, or homecoming, all work to open our hearts up a little more, and we start to view the world through a lens of abundance.
I could sit here and yammer until I'm blue in the face about all of the wonderful things Cosmos Qigong does for us, but maybe one of the best things is how it instills in us, almost while we're looking the other way, a grateful heart. It's pretty cool when you stop and think about it. While qigong works on breaking through our blockages and restoring our physical health, it also helps to give us mental clarity. That mental clarity does a whole heck of a lot for us, including helping us to not sweat the small stuff, to smile at a passerby just because, and to appreciate a beautiful day for what it is. As we build positive habits up bit by bit, we experience and express more gratitude for everything in the world around us. Often we find ourselves expressing this in our standing meditation. The world becomes more beautiful to us, doors that we never knew were there suddenly open. For myself, this net effect of my qigong practice has been incredibly subtle, yet deeply profound.
Shaolin Wahnam Twin Cities just turned a year old at the beginning of the month, and what a year it's been. We've seen the successful launch of our classes, the sprouting seeds of community, and an incredible set of courses taught by Grandmaster Wong last month. Not too shabby for a first year. For all of this, I am truly grateful and humbled to pass these arts on. I look forward to what the following year will bring and how that too will reflect on my sense of gratitude when we sit down to turkey again next year.