We're almost finished learning Dadao (halberd) and that is the last form on our list. After that's done there are a few extra forms that are optional to learn but mostly it's qigong and internal stuff, Shifu doesn't teach these to many people so I'm really glad to get the chance to learn it. Our class is in a bit of a weird place now though, what will our training be like from now on? No-one knows of course but we're all thinking about it a lot. There's never been a traditional class here that also does the internal training so there's no precedent. I don't even know if Shifu knows what will happen or not, this school is a pretty fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of place.

I'm really excited, this stuff is a big part of why I gave up so much to come live here for 5 years. If I was only interested in forms or sparring, there were many places I could have gone to that would have been much more convenient. I really liked the combination of physical practice with self-cultivation that Wudang offered though. I love the idea of training every part of myself together instead of separating "me" into little boxes that I open and look at only one at a time.

So far this year I've been spending a lot more of my mental energy on things like attitude and understanding, rather than just endurance. Is it because the training is easier? I don't think so, I think the atmosphere of our class has changed, we're all aware that we're only here for a little over a year longer and we need to get the most out of it that we can. My meditation has also played a part in that, I've gone through a leap in progress that is hard to explain but I'll just say that I've been letting go of some negativity that I'd collected without meaning to and my emotions are becoming more and more stable as my body becomes more and more healthy. Good stuff!