Stay In The Moment

I had wanted to share my inspirational experience at our annual boot camp yesterday in today’s entry but as I began to write, I realized my thoughts and passion were dominated by something that has been bothering me all week.

James Hansen, the director of the Goddard Institute, predicts that at our present rate of emissions, our atmospheric carbon dioxide levels will reach 450 ppm within thirty three years. At this point there will not be any ice left on the planet - that is if we maintain our present rate of emissions. With second world countries just starting to industrialize and first world countries turning to environmentally volatile biofuels as opposed to reducing consumption, our species’ negative impact on the environment is only going to increase long before it gets better. According to Hansen we have already hit one tipping point. No matter what we do at this point, we will be without Arctic ice within five to ten years.

Most of the damage we have caused is reversible but not in any timeframe that is relevant to humans. That’s the kicker - relevant to humans. We tend to place so much faith in mother nature’s ability to adapt and restore that we fail to consider our own arrogance. The planet may go on but the likelihood of our species being one of the few that actually survive extinction is extremely remote.

Lately I find myself asking some pertinent questions. Why are countries so eager to become less dependent upon foreign oil rather than just less dependent upon oil period? Now that Alberta is finally labeled as being the source of some the world’s least environmentally friendly oil, why are we using the term “dirty oil” to describe it? Is that not clouding the issue and implying there is a such thing as clean oil?

It can be easy to become overwhelmed with the magnitude of the problem, making it almost impossible to stay in the moment. If I don’t stay focused and appreciate the here and now, my life will pass me by before I realize it is over - or worse yet, without me having the opportunity to leave a legacy of which my children would be proud. The answer to our problem is within each of us.

Our global solution is only a matter of conscious and conscientious existence. Mindful actions produce mindful results. Breathe in, breathe out.

“Life can be found only in the present moment. The past is gone, the future is not yet here, and if we do not go back to ourselves in the present moment, we cannot be in touch with life.”
- Thich Nhat Hanh (b. 1926)

Respect

Respect. We talk about it, we teach it, but what is it? Everyone knows how to show it but very few actually conduct their lives in a way that embodies it.

A leader must exemplify respect. Of course no one is perfect, especially me, but if we want people to follow us, listen to us, respect us, we must strive to truly embrace the concept of respect and endeavour to conduct ourselves accordingly. I have made many bonehead mistakes in my past and I continue to struggle with this ideal. The fact that I keep it in front of me at all times, and consider it a work in progress, shows the personal value I have placed upon the concept of respect. It is a lifelong commitment that I will never fully master but one to which I am completely devoted to.

There are many times when I am not even aware I am showing a lack of respect until after I reflect upon the issue. I find that if I do not apply self realization, empathy, and accountability to my daily life, I can coast along, blissfully unaware of the consequences of my actions.

My respect for my body and my health is reflected by my diet and my lifestyle.

My respect for my instructor’s wisdom and time is reflected by my commitment to master the concepts of his lessons by applying myself 100% to this responsibility before seeking more knowledge.

My respect for my students is reflected by the passion which fuels my classes.

My respect for my art is reflected by the standard to which I hold myself and my students.

As an instructor I am obviously very sensitive to a student showing any lack of respect for my time and efforts. Fariborz Azhakh has a great story about him losing his opportunity to receive a personal lesson from Grandmaster Jihan Jae because he showed disrespect for his instructor’s role as a teacher through a flippant, yet innocent, remark. Presently I have a couple of sihings working their butts off to earn their black belt but will probably never achieve the rank because they still do not understand the concept of respect. Such are my failings as a teacher.

“There is no respect for others without humility in one's self.”
- Henri Frederic Amiel (1821 - 1881)

Avarice

Petrol prices are up, disposable income is down. Our culture continues to decline while we struggle to maintain our privileged lifestyle with less available money.

Our dependence on fossil fuels is causing many of the major problems facing our world today. Rather than focusing on how our culture has evolved around this dependence and encouraging the social change required to address it, we look for alternative fuels so that we can continue to maintain the status quo. Biofuels are not the answer, in fact they may be the final nail in the coffin. While world governments are beginning to legislate ethanol based fuels, dollar signs are filling the eyes of many as they strategize on how to exploit this new cash cow. Forests are being clear cut to make way for crops to feed our fuel addiction while we continue to struggle to produce enough food to feed our expanding population. The food crisis is such that the organic food industry may be wiped out while we have no choice but to use chemicals to maximize production to address this burgeoning issue.

Here in Canada, eleven companies in Quebec were charged with gas price fixing. While oil companies continue to rake in record profits, their greed is such that they resort to illegal tactics to generate even more. CEOs of major corporations continue to get paid exorbitant amounts of money to make their shareholders rich at the expense of the planet and ultimately at the expense of the longevity of the very corporation that is feeding their greed. In an attempt to get by with less, our schools are devoting less time and funding to the arts and physical education to maintain focus on the sciences. Our governments have followed the same pattern. Perhaps this is why we continue to search for a technological or scientific solution to a social problem and why we are in another dark age of cultural decline.

For my part, I am trying to address my concerns through my wallet. I am simplifying my life so that I consume less. I encourage small local businesses by spending a little extra on their products rather than patronizing the big corporate chains. Ultimately this will encourage less urban sprawl and reduce my need to travel outside my immediate community to shop. I will continue to use my disposable income to reflect my values and not my materialistic wants while avoiding television so that I can maintain enough clarity to tell the difference.

“A grandfather talking to his young grandson tells the boy he has two wolves inside of him struggling with each other. The first is the wolf of peace, love and kindness. The other wolf is fear, greed and hatred. "Which wolf will win, grandfather?" asks the young boy. "Whichever one I feed," is the reply.”
- Native American Proverb

Mediocrity

“I am on a personal quest to rid my life of mediocrity and indifference. I believe that with my efforts, influence, and passion I can contribute to a fundamental shift in humanity’s core values so that we all take responsibility for the well being of our fellow man. I hope to initiate several projects that address the three issues that weigh heavily upon my soul : Environmental Self Defence, Peace Education, and Mental Health Awareness.”

This was the affirmation I declared when I first started journaling last November. Since then, my thoughts, and thus my journaling efforts, have focused on this ideal. I’m not a very politically active person nor do I even like talking politics. However it is impossible to eradicate mediocrity in one’s own life when so much of our quality of life is determined by our political leaders and their personal values and policies. I am not affiliated with any political party nor do I endorse any particular candidate. However the way I see it, my political leaders are elected officials who I am paying to do a job. If they are not doing their jobs to my satisfaction, then I am going to speak up and pull no punches. I might even resort to insults and sarcasm. Such is my wrath.

Our Alberta Premier has given himself a 34% pay increase. I would love to vent about the fact that he did this immediately following his election after his job was guaranteed for at least another four years. I would love to vent even more about his claim that he has the support of the Alberta public on this issue. If he has so much public support why did he not give himself this raise during the election rather than waiting until after he won his minimum four year mandate? I had to smile though when he justified the raise. He says it is the only way to attract higher quality candidates to run for office. Doesn’t that imply that he isn’t the best candidate since he went for the job at a lower rate? Kind of also implies that he didn’t deserve the raise. Ed Stelmach - the Peter Principle in action.

But I’m not going to vent about that - I know, I already did but work with me here. What I am going to vent about is the fact that something like this can happen without a huge public outcry. We seem to like to voice our outrage to one another but at the end of the day we all just roll over, accept it, and move on. What will be even more outrageous is come next election our political leaders will roll out huge spending increases and tax cuts and we will all be bamboozled to vote for them again. Such is the way of Canadian politics. We vote for candidates who cater to our individual short term wants at the expense of our long term needs. We leave those for future generations to worry about. We ignore what we are seeing happening in our government and vote for candidates based on their political affiliations as opposed to their personal merits. We allow our political leaders to bully our representatives to set public policy and vote according to the party’s guidelines as opposed to the will of their constituents. Somehow we have to get back control of our government so that it represents the will of the people and not the self serving will of the party. We have to start demanding accountability in our politicians and for gosh sakes, stop accepting mediocrity. We have to recognize the difference between promises used to get a politician through the next election and promises to solve a problem.

I would like to challenge my students who read this blog to take action. Action to initiate the change you want to see. If you disagree with what I have written here, email me at jeff@silentriverkungfu.com. If you agree with this then let Ed Stelmach know at premier@gov.ab.ca. It does not matter what you do as long as you do something.

There it is: short, sweet, and totally uninspiring. Just like my Premier. Except for the sweet part.

"Perhaps nothing in our society is more needed for those in positions of authority than accountability. Too often those with authority are able (and willing) to surround themselves with people who support their decisions without question"
- Uknown Author

Birthright

I met with my knee surgeon for the first time since the surgery eight weeks ago and I have to say that I am pretty happy with my situation.

The tear in my knee was significant so a flap of cartilage had to be removed. Why I continue to tear this stuff without even being aware of a precipitating incident is beyond me. I’d like to think it’s because I have an awesome pain threshold but I suspect it has more to do with bad genetics than anything else. Thanks mom and dad. The great news is that my surgeon is world class and the knee abrasion arthroplasty he performed on the joint could regenerate and strengthen the cartilage in the knee and perhaps stop this cycle of damage. The procedure involved the drilling of about ten holes through the remaining cartilage into the bone. This will draw stem cells and blood up from the bone to the surface of the knee and into the cartilage. This should strengthen the overall integrity of the joint. Since nothing is for free, I will require a significantly longer recovery time than if I had just a standard cartilage removal - up to a year. That totally explains why the swelling persists and why I still cannot kneel on that knee.

The rehab for this is right up my alley. The knee must be exercised during the healing process in order for the cartilage to have a better chance of regeneration, I just need to approach it with moderation to control the swelling. Thus I started performing my forms with deeper stances this week. Life is good.

All this good news has got me thinking about my lot in life and how lucky I have been. And I do mean lucky. Most of everything I have, and have accomplished, has been due to my birthright. Thanks again mom and dad.

I have lived a life where air, food, water, and warmth, our most basic physiologic needs according to psychologist Andrew Maslow, have always been guaranteed. I was born in a country where I have the freedom and privilege to accomplish almost anything I desire since my basic necessities for life were forever guaranteed the second I took my first breath because of where my first breath was taken.

What if my first breath had been taken in Malawi? Would I have ever had the option of studying kung fu or would I have been too obsessed with where my next meal would come from? What access to medical care would I have? I have little doubt that my torn knee would have been something I had to live with for the rest of my life if the geography of my birth had been different.

What a privileged life I live. All my necessities are more than addressed while other, less fortunate souls obsess and struggle to find enough for their children to eat. How much of my lifestyle is contributing to their plight? While I consume more than my fair share of the earth’s resources, I need to remind myself that my actions, my very thoughts, are only a privilege afforded to me by my birthright. I hope I maintain enough humility to never forget how lucky I am to have the choices and options I have. With my birthright comes the moral responsibility to ensure I consider the consequences to the less fortunate for the life I choose to live.

“It is easy to dodge our responsibilities, but we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities.”
- Josiah Charles Stamp (1880 - 1941)