Taijiquan instructor says secret to long life is moving … slowly

DANIEL CLIFTON • PICAYUNE EDITOR

BUCHANAN DAM — Harvey Klee just doesn’t live up to his 80 years. He laughs when a person reacts to his age claim.

“At 80,” Klee starts, but before he can say anything else, the person interjects, “You’re 80?”

It’s a combination of surprise and a question. Klee just smiles.

“Yeah, I get that a lot,” said the silver-haired man with an easy grin. Klee, it seems, harbors a secret. An ancient Chinese secret.

Well, the ancient Chinese part might be correct, but when it comes to secreting away a key to his youthfulness, Klee doesn’t keep it to himself. In fact, every Thursday at 9 a.m., Klee gives away his secret to anybody who shows up to Highland Lakes United Methodist Church, 8303 RR 1431.

For 90 minutes, Klee leads people through the simplistic-looking movement-and-breathing exercises he credits for a big part of his youthfulness.

It’s tai chi. Or in Klee’s case, more precisely, Taijiquan, a form of the “soft” martial art.

“Tai chi is what we call an internal martial art,” he explained.

During a recent class, Francine Morris and Valarie Wilson joined Klee. Typically, the class attracts several more, but with summer vacations and visiting grandchildren, the numbers dwindled a bit. Klee, who showed up with a cane, didn’t mind.

“As long as somebody is here and wants to learn, I’ll be here,” he said as he led the two women in warm-up exercises. The cane sits on a nearby table, never to be picked up again during or after the next 90 minutes. While Klee moves easily for a man his age, a bit of plantar fascia in his foot sneaks up on him now and then, causing a hobble.

Five minutes into the Taijiquan class, all hints of any issues with his feet vanish. He looks as if he could break out into a tap dance at any moment (if he knows how to tap dance).

Today, Taijiquan features a series of slow, planned-out movements. It started in China several hundred years ago as a combative form. Klee explained that with the Chinese invention of gun powder and the advent of weapons, martial arts such as Taijiquan didn’t play such an important role anymore.

“But practitioners noticed something,” Klee said. “People who practiced the form lived longer. They lived healthier lives. They had less pain and less stress.”[box]IF YOU GO
WHAT: Taijiquan classes
WHEN: 9 a.m. Thursdays
WHERE: Highland Lakes United Methodist Church, 8303 RR 1431 in Buchanan Dam
INSTRUCTOR: Harvey Klee[/box]

Klee became enamored with Taijiquan many years ago upon hearing about its benefits. After several years of studying it, he had the opportunity to become a certified instructor when a group from Bejing were in New York to offer certification.

Then, he put the word out for anyone interested in learning. Highland Lakes Methodist Church offered a place to hold the classes, and people began attending.

As he led the recent class with Morris and Wilson, they practiced moves such as “play the lute,” “repulse the monkey” and “eagle claw.”

Klee broke down the routine, going over each particular move for the two attendees. Then, he stepped back and watched them, offering corrections when necessary.

Finally, the three worked their way through a series of movements.

“It’s like a moving meditation,” Klee said after class.

Even watching it, one felt a sense of calm, peace and well-being. There’s no music, no speaking. The only sound is the whirring of the six ceiling fans.

Klee, Morris and Wilson slipped from one posture to the next. The movements were slow and deliberate. He later explained that moving slowly helps practitioners focus on balance, proper alignment and breathing.

With a list of benefits that include helping curb arthritis, promoting better balance and lung capacity as well as strengthening mental acuity, the motivation to practice Taijiquan every day between classes seems overwhelming.

Or maybe the best motivation comes by just watching Klee move and laugh. He appears to know the secret to a long and healthy life.

You don’t even need to ask what the secret is, just show up every Thursday at 9 a.m., and he’ll teach it to you.

daniel@thepicayune.com