Hello Coach Xiaozhou,

My name is Veronica, and I’m from Sweden. I’m 52 years old. In Sweden, everyone uses given names—even with teachers, colleagues, or students—so please call me Veronica.

I’ve lived in China since 2019, when I moved here with my husband and son, who was nearly 10 at the time. Now he’s almost 16! We stayed in Shanghai through most of the pandemic, including the lockdown.  

We enjoy life in China, and I’ve grown very interested in Chinese culture—especially taiji, qigong, and other martial arts (quan). I’m also interested in Chinese medicine. To me, these practices are essential parts of China’s cultural wisdom. This connection is one reason I began practicing qigong in 2021, though not the only one: I was also struggling with poor health and hoped it would aid my healing journey.  

For the past few years, I’ve studied a form of taiji taught at Baiyunguan in Beijing, a Longmen Daoist monastery. My teacher’s teacher is the head instructor of this style—Yuan Shi Taiji, which I believe means "original" or "ancient" taiji.  

At first, I approached qigong and taiji as health preservation tools. Slowly, and also with the help of Chinese medicine, my health has started to improve. But I’ve also come to see these arts as more than physical practices—they can also nurture mental (cognitive) and spiritual (shen) growth.  

The little I’ve seen of the Water Quan intrigues me. It’s a beautiful, fluid style, and even my brief attempts left me feeling calm and relaxed. Despite its slow, gentle movements, I sensed a subtle energy (especially in my skin) similar to qigong’s calming effect.  

Practicing the basic "three-step move" reminded me of learning taiji initially: my body resisted coordination, and my mind struggled to memorize. But after repeating it at home, the movements began to settle—my body remembered what my brain couldn’t grasp at first. I still have a long way to go even for this movement, I admit, but one of the keys to learning is surely repetition and practicing every day.

I love the playful, taiji-like sequences, but the qigong-like moves stand out for their grounding, calming quality.  

I am aware I still lack foundational understanding. My body mechanics are unrefined, and I miss many details. I’m often clunky, but I’m eager to improve.  

Thank you for guiding me.  

/Veronica

05/26/2025

［此帖子已被 Veronica 在 2025/5/27 13:30:40 编辑过］

（附：中文翻译）

晓舟教练您好，

我叫维罗妮卡，来自瑞典，今年52岁。在瑞典，所有人都直接称呼名字——即使是对老师、同事或学生——所以请叫我维罗妮卡。

2019年，我和当时快10岁的儿子随丈夫搬到中国，至今一直居住在此。如今儿子都快16岁了！疫情期间我们大部分时间都待在上海，包括封控时期。

我们很享受在中国的生活，我也对中国文化产生了浓厚兴趣——尤其是太极、气功和其他武术（拳），还包括中医。在我看来，这些都是中国文化智慧的核心部分。这也是我2021年开始练习气功的原因之一，但并非唯一原因：当时我的健康状况不佳，希望气功能帮助我踏上疗愈之旅。

过去几年，我一直在学习北京白云观（龙门派道观）传授的一种太极。我的老师的师父是这一拳种“元始太极”的主教练——我想“元始”的意思是“本源”或“古老”的太极。

起初，我把气功和太极当作养生工具。在中医的帮助下，我的健康状况逐渐好转。但我也逐渐认识到，这些技艺不仅仅是身体锻炼——它们还能滋养心智（认知）和精神（神）的成长。

我对“水拳”的初体验就让我很着迷。它风格优美流畅，即使只是短暂尝试，也能让我感到平静放松。尽管动作缓慢柔和，我却感受到一种微妙的能量（尤其在皮肤上），类似气功的安神效果。

练习基础（十大形踩步）“三步动作”时，我想起刚开始学太极的情景：身体不协调，脑子记不住动作。但在家反复练习后，动作开始变得顺畅——身体记住了大脑最初无法理解的东西。我承认，单是这个动作我就还有很长的路要走，但学习的关键之一肯定是重复和每日练习。

我喜欢那些如太极般灵动的连贯动作，但类似气功的招式因其带来的踏实感和平静感尤为突出。

我知道自己仍缺乏基础知识，身体发力方式不够精细，也忽略了很多细节。动作常常笨拙，但我很渴望进步。

感谢您的指导。

/维罗妮卡

［此帖子已被 晓舟 在 2025/5/27 15:28:29 编辑过］

Dear Veronica,

It's a pleasure to read your notes as you have a connection with Water Quan. I'm also glad you love Chinese culture. Through practicing Water Quan(水浪拳) and the Ten Forms（十大形）, I believe you can distinguish the genuine from the fake and gain a better understanding of traditional Chinese culture.

Water Quan is not only the culmination of internal martial arts, integrating the essence of Xinyi Quan, Xingyi Quan, Taiji Quan, and Bagua Quan, but also a Taoist martial art highly conducive to health and longevity. With your seriousness and wisdom, I'm sure you will master Water Quan. Moreover, you can benefit both yourself and other foreign friends through this practice.

晓舟 2025.5.23

亲爱的维罗妮卡，

很高兴读到你与水浪拳有缘的小记，也很高兴你喜爱中国文化。通过修习水浪拳（Water Quan）和十大形（the Ten Forms），相信你能去伪存真，加深对中国传统文化的理解。

水浪拳不仅是内家拳的集大成者，融合了心意拳、形意拳、太极拳、八卦拳的精华，更是一门非常有利于健康长寿的道家拳法。以你的认真与聪慧，定能学好水浪拳，还能让自己和其他外国朋友都从中受益。 

晓舟

［此帖子已被 晓舟 在 2025/5/27 15:30:41 编辑过］

［此帖子已被 晓舟 在 2025/5/27 16:04:39 编辑过］