So there I was, sitting at my desk and pondering the timeless question: how does an aging T’ai Chi champion stay relevant?  Should I make some new videos?  Write another book?  Go on another seminar tour?  And then it hit me – why not create a place where people all over the world could come and share the T’ai Chi experience with each other – promote their videos, books and seminars?  Or even better, create a place for people to connect with others, and share their T’ai Chi experiences – their breakthroughs and struggles, questions and insights, ideas and emotions

So on August 3 we re-launched DrTaiChi.com as the home site for the new T’ai Chi Network – the “Facebook” of T’ai Chi. In less than a month we’ve grown to more than 200 active members, and at the rate we’re growing we should be over 1000 by the end of September.  Already the community is extremely dynamic – and very international.  We have members from Japan, Bulgaria, Puerto Rico and Italy… as well as from all parts of the USA.

We originally thought we would charge a small monthly membership fee (adding lots of extra value, of course). But after testing it out this month, it’s pretty obvious the T’ai Chi Network has got to be free and open to everyone.  All the members of the development team got together and said, “What were we thinking?!!”  So it’s official now – membership in The T’ai Chi Network is FREE.

But now we’re in blue sky country. As the Network grows, it becomes more and more whatever you – the members – decide to make it.  I know I’ve got some ideas.  I think there should be more video uploads.  T’ai Chi hits the eye and travels inward to the soul, and I’d like to see how people are practicing it all over the world.  I’d like to expand the T’ai Chi Directory and truly make it the largest user-friendly T’ai Chi teacher database on the web.  That’s not all of my ideas by a long shot, but I’d like to see what you come up with.

So what can YOU do?  Well, I’m glad you asked! First of all: participate! If you haven’t signed up for the Network yet, what are you waiting for? Membership is FREE and it literally takes two minutes to get your own login.  Just go to www.drtaichi.com/taichi-network/ .  And if you do already have a profile set up – come back and make friends. I can tell you, there are some reeeaalllyyy interesting people here already. Post a blog, start a new topic in the forum, or write on someone’s wall.  Share your T’ai Chi experiences. And finally, share the site with others.  This is a chance to build a great community together.  Let’s not miss this opportunity.

Because seriously folks, you don’t want me to start making another website.

I did a little research – did you know that there are more than 70 million blogs on the internet? Actually there are way more than that by now – that was the count a year and a half ago, with 175,000 new blogs added every day.

Imagine if all those blogs were voices, and you had to try to pick out a particular voice to listen to. And now I’m going to add to all that noise with this blog.

Almost every day I have a conversation with the Gods of T’ai Chi. OK – I don’t mean that literally. Several years ago a woman I met suggested that when I did my practice I should “listen to the T’ai Chi gods.” Well, I don’t know about gods, but I do know that every day when I practice and when I teach I see new and amazing insights into the meaning of T’ai Chi. Sometimes these insights are material – the nuances of the actual motions of the body – and sometimes these insights are metaphorical. Spiritual.

Messages from the T’ai Chi Gods. That’s what I’m going to write about in this blog. Maybe they will make sure my voice gets heard amongst all those others. Check back often to read what they’ve told me, and send feedback to let me know what you think…