We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sam Widerschein a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Sam, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Is there a heartwarming story from your career that you look back on?

One of the most rewarding aspects of teaching Tai-Chi/QiGong is seeing when a student makes an emotional “breakthrough.” One of the many places that I teach Tai-Chi/QiGong is at a transitional living substance use program. At this particular time, we had an older patient who was a career Navy veteran. He was very proud of his time in the military, and he wore his Naval ball cap everyday. On this day, he walked up to me, tears in his eyes and handed me a folded up piece of loose leaf paper. He said, “I wrote you a poem about my time with you in Tai-Chi. I’ve actually written poetry ever since I was a young boy, but I’ve never told anyone or shared my poetry with anybody, because I thought it wasn’t manly. Men weren’t meant to express feelings. Your class has taught me to start being comfortable with being my true, authentic self, and I wanted to give you this to thank you. Your class has changed my life.” He had tears streaming down his cheeks and gave me a huge hug. That poem is framed and still hangs in my gymnasium to this day.

Sam, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

How I Got Started:
When I was a child I loved watching the old Shaw Brothers Kung Fu flicks on TV. I thought those guys were magic! The way they moved and the style they had when the fought, Wow! I’m getting excited just thinking about it! Once, my dad rented me and my brother Fist of Legend, starring Jet Li. We must’ve made him rent us that movie 50 times, ha! I always wanted to learn Kung Fu, but it was near impossible to find in my hometown in the 90’s. Fast forward a bit, I’m 19 and in college in little St. Augustine, FL. My good friend, Gregg, moved up there with me during my Sophomore year. He wanted to learn Martial Arts. I told him that I would ONLY learn Kung Fu (the other Martial Arts are great too, they just aren’t what I fell in love with as a child). He called me excited one night, and said, “I found Kung Fu!” I displayed my closed mindedness and said, “oh that’s a scam for sure.” When he returned to our dorm room he showed me what he had learned that night, how to stand in a proper empty stance and how to grab using the Praying Mantis hands! I was hooked!!! I joined class the next day. I became a Kung Fu junkie, and have been obsessed ever since.

Benefits of Kung Fu and Tai Chi:
Improved strength, flexibility, enhanced cardiovascular health, better coordination, improved balance, increased focus and discipline, stress relief and relaxation, improved confidence and self esteem, reduced risk of falls, enhanced mindfulness, support for depression, anxiety, arthritis, fibromyalgia, etc. They even help to prevent the on-set of Alzheimers and Dementia related conditions. Just to name a few.

What am I most proud of:
I am most proud of the community that we’ve created at the school. It’s so much more than a place where you just learn to block, kick and strike. The students train together, hangout outside of class and support each other. They are the most amazing group of people that I could ever hope for!

The main thing I want people to know about me/the school:
The main thing I want someone to know about the school is that we are a place where nothing is handed to you. You are going to earn everything at Aun Loon Gwan, but you’re going to earn it in a positive, supportive environment.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

We opened our doors almost exactly one year prior to the global Covid pandemic. When the world shut down we went from about 20 students down to 6. We ended up meeting up in an outdoor space (once it was allowed) and keeping a very large, safe distance between each one of us and I would have to shout instructions at the few remaing students from a good distance away. It was a pretty wild time, but I was very impressed with those students’ resiliency and desire to learn.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

I think the most important thing you can have not in my field, but in life, is your perspective. The way that you analyze a given situation and how you navigate the transitions of that situation typically determines what makes someone successful in life, in my opinion. When I say successful, I dont necessarily mean financially or anything like that, but do you genuinely feel that you are happy. If you’re not, determine why and then start taking steps towards making the necessary changes.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Www.kungfulou.com
• Instagram: Aunloongwankungfu
• Facebook: Sam Widerschein
• Other: [email protected]

Image Credits

All pictures taken by Blair Bors