It is said that Chi Gong (or Qi Gong) has been around for over 2,000 years. It’s hard to classify exactly what it is because it fits into a variety of categories. It can be considered a physical activity or exercise, a martial art, a meditation or spiritual practice and/or a method used to prevent disease or cure certain illnesses. Chi Gong was originally practiced by Taoist monks in China and fortunately for us it has made it’s way here to America. There are many variations of Chi Gong. I was taught and practice something called ‘The Eight Pieces of Brocade.’ The woman that taught me was a doctor of Chinese medicine and acupuncturist that received her license in China. She told me an amazing story of a man that she had treated for a knee injury whom appeared to be in his late eighties, but when she checked him via a vibrational reading (a method used by Chinese Medicine practitioners that enables them to guage the vibrational frequencies of our internal organs) she said his organs had the strength of a healthy twenty five year old. The man had explained to her that the Shaolin Monks healed him from a life threatening disease and taught him the 8 pieces of brocade advising him to do them in order to stay healthy. He reported to the doctor that had been doing them everyday for the last 15 years. I myself have been doing them for almost five years now and I love it! My favorite time to do it is first thing in morning. It’s a perfect way to start your day. You’re connecting with nature,(one of the seven disciplines)–if you do them outside , you’re getting 15 to 20 minutes of fresh air, and the amazing charge of energy you feel is better than any artificial stimulant on the market!

Live the 7,

John Nies

This past Sunday was Mothers Day and I decided to dedicate my word of the week to my mother. It’s actually two words that describe the first thought that comes to mind when I think of my Mom. I know there are millions, if not billions of awesome mothers that come from all corners of the World, so you if you happen to be one of the lucky ones, like myself than you will relate to what I’m about to say. Before I get started I want to speak to those of you that were raised without a Mom or by a Mom that struggled when it came to loving you. I think it’s important to recognize that we can learn lessons and grow/evolve whether your mom was there for you or not. Some of us learn by having a positive influence in our lives, someone that we can emulate, but many lessons are learned when we have someone that is behaving in such a way where we walk away learning what not to do. So whether or not you had unconditional love during your childhood it’s never too late to be that person who now shares it with those people you have relations with. Now, in order to have the capacity to love unconditionally one may have to go back to the very beginning of their life because that is where/when we learned (learned being a key word) how not to. I believe that the large majority of human beings are born with a perfectly pure essence and as we develop as children we pick up behaviors, attitudes, and perspective. We are taught hatred, racism, violence, prejudice, immorality and fear. So the good news is this, if we can learn these things we can certainly teach ourselves how to unlearn them. The old adage, if there’s a will there’s a way definitely applies here. If you are like me and believe that love is an essential component to having peace of mind, beautiful relationships, and an amazing life than you will make the effort to love everyone and everything unconditionally. Spread the love people, our World and all its occupants could definitely use it!