As I mentioned in the past newsletter, I have received the Palace Pu-erh tea (aged 8 years) from China and it is now available!

I am also excited to be carrying three organic teas in addition to the premium grade Palace Pu-erh Tea. The three new organic teas are Jasmine Pearl Tea, Mini Tuo Cha Tea and Ancient Golden Mini Tuo Cha Tea.

See the link below for more information on all of these wonderful teas.

Feel free to call or email me with any questions about tea preparation or recommendations.

For more information on Palace Pu-erh or our new organic teas

Within Chinese medicine, we can view all of the interactions that take place within us and around us as movements of qi. In a simple way, we can identify these movements as either following the normal flow of nature, and thus bringing us back to our own nature, or carrying us away from ourselves, in opposition to the natural movement of our own lives.

In classical Chinese texts our role in this process is sometimes described as the process of learning to faithfully follow the reality of life.

So what can we do if agitation, stress and tension become a movement in our life that carries us away from ourselves and from the reality of the present moment? We can do the things that will bring us back to our nature.

One of the most simple and powerful ways to come back to the reality of life is to spend time outdoors in nature. Simply sit quietly and feel the breeze on your skin, watch the leaves swaying gently on the trees or observe the careful movements of the birds around you. Let all of the hectic activity of your mind settle, until all of your thoughts of what might happen later or what has happened in the past slip away and you are present with all of nature around you.

If you have studied qigong, make sure that you practice everyday. This provides a solid foundation for the proper movements of the qi, which will influence how you respond to everything else throughout the day. Practicing in the morning and then for a short time later in the day will profoundly support you in all of the activities of your day.

Cultivate yourself by finding the art and way within what you are already doing. Within traditional Chinese culture there are numerous "ways," such as the way of tea, the way of calligraphy, the way of martial arts, the way of medicine, and so on. In this sense, a way is how one approaches life, rather than a specific method or technique.

Spend time with beauty. Listen to beautiful music, look at beautiful paintings and read inspiring books. The things that we find beautiful and inspiring are beautiful and inspiring because we can see the proper movement of our own life within them. It is the quality of our own qi that we see within the beautiful painting, music and writing.

Whatever you do, make sure that you do something every day, preferably throughout the day. There will always be circumstances and events that pull you away from yourself. It is through small steps that you can come back to your own nature, and, as the classics advise, learn to faithfully follow the reality of life.

In our office we practice a specialized method of traditional Chinese herbal medicine that uses precise, individualized combinations of herbs to address multiple aspects of each person's situation.

After we have seen the person, figured out the traditional Chinese assessment and written the formula, the herbs still need to be prepared. To prepare the herbs we use a three stage process.

Stage One
We begin with concentrated granules, which are made from the highest quality Chinese herbs. These granules are measured on a triple-beam balance scale and combined in a bowl. Once all the ingredients have been measured out, they are mixed together in the bowl.

Stage Two
After the first stage, the mixed herbs are carefully poured onto a sheet of paper. They are then mixed again on the paper and rolled several times to ensure that all of the herbs are completely integrated into the formula.

Stage Three
Once the herbs have been completely mixed, the formula is smoothed and flattened. On the flattened surface a Chinese character is inscribed into the formula. Every formula is given a character that is appropriate to the actions of the formula and to the individual taking the formula. This is part of the Daoist tradition, which considers written characters to express an inherent quality of qi. The photograph above shows a completed formula with a character inscription. The character is "zheng," which means upright, correct, proper and so on. It is often used to describe the proper movement of the qi and the healthy functioning of the qi in the body.

After this final stage the formula is packaged up and delivered to you!

For more information on our office