zentao.comDiary of a Student
1st entry
My lesson today began with slow form practice. Using a form I know well, Shi Lei had me slow my movements down, not just a little, but a lot. He insisted that each movement be done precisely, as is his usual, but done so very slowly that, as he said, you are a stone statue just coming to life, so long frozen to immobility that waking will take a thousand years. Each movement should take a thousand years, he then repeated.
So I began, him watching like some critical bird. "No. More slowly. More more slowly." He demonstrates, his arm and hand brushing aside a pretended reaching hand in such slow, smooth motion that it seems as if he isn't moving at all. It took forever for him to complete just that move. Now it was my turn.
An hour later he was satisfied. I could stop. I had done one movement of one form to his satisfaction. "You are getting better," he said. "Now we work power form."
He selected another form I know, but instead of using footwork, he had me do it static, in Crane stance. "Middle speed," he said. "Strikes - all force possible."
He struck the stone wall - BOOM. "Hard. Fast," he said. "Now. Begin."
I'm thinking to myself, In Crane stance??! O boy.
I'm not a very coordinated person. In fact, when I started under Forrest's tutalage six years ago, I couldn't figure out how he could get his arms from down at his sides to in front of him, then "chambered" in one sweeping motion. He had to actually break it down into a small, chopped up series of movements for me to understand and be able to emulate. I've come a long way since then, but for me to do what Shi Lei was suggesting intimidated me.
Seeing my fear, Shi Lei had me "warm up" by doing some "flow form" Crane work, especially Stance Dancing. Crane is hard for me, but I soon lost myself in the feeling of it...to the point that when he spoke again, I realized that I hadn't even been aware of him so deep was I in the joy of the movement. He asked me to step into full Crane and begin working the upper body movements of the form he had originally suggested.
I was surprised. I was actually able to do it, while throwing full power strikes at what Shi Lei calls middle speed (to me it's fast.). And I held my Crane stances absolutely perfectly - both sides - through the whole form three times each side. I was pleased.
His response was to tell me that I was definitely improving. And he did seem pleased with me. The little single nod and small smile he wore told me so. More, I was pleased. Each lesson is so very hard for me, and I feel like my progress is so very minute.