Tiger Challenge

To a martial arts student a tournament can be an important, even career-changing, experience. But it is not the competition itself where all the benefit is found. The real value resides in the preparation. Having a goal with a deadline is often just what a training regime requires for focus and a sense of purpose.

Our annual Tiger Challenge Tournament is once again behind us. We’ve had bigger tournaments but I don’t think we’ve had one better. For an event that no matter how well prepared we are going in, last minute registrations and dropouts always throw in an unhealthy dose of stress the day of. Yet despite all the uncertainty, all the events went almost exactly at their estimated start times and the tournament finished exactly when predicted. That is a tribute to Sifu Csillag, the I Ho Chuan Team, and all the SRKF Black Belts who volunteered their time and expertise to make the tournament a success.

Thank you to everyone who made our Tiger Challenge a success this year. All the tournament proceeds will be donated to charity.

“Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.” - Alexander Graham Bell (1847 - 1922)

Making Self Defence Relevant

I just watched one of the most eye opening, gut wrenching documentaries I could imagine. ‘I’ll Be Me’ chronicles Glen Campbell’s final tour after disclosing he had been diagnosed as suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease. I cannot imagine facing such a fate, but being able to put that level of vulnerability out there for the whole world to see is something beyond comprehension for me.

In 2012, the US was spending $140 billion to treat Alzheimer’s patients. As the baby boomers age, that number is expected to rise to $600 billion which was the entire US defence budget. As US Congressman Edward Markey has said, where is the money better spent to protect the American people? Better healthcare or more bombers?

What is self defence? It literally is the defence of one’s person or interests but typically we associate it with defence against the use of physical force. Narrowing our definition of self defence in that way downplays where the real risk to our person and interests lay. Our health, our narrow-mindedness, our diets, our finances, our anger, our acceptance of mediocrity — all have a better chance of harming us than an actual physical assault.

“Often times I have hated self defence; if I were stronger I would not have used such a weapon.” - Kahlil Gibran (1883 - 1931)

Thanksgiving

I try to make gratitude a part of every day. Life and circumstance come with all that stress and anxiety that encourage lamenting of the past and worry about the future. Gratitude is what keeps me grounded in the present moment.

Thanksgiving is a special time of year. Crass commercialization of almost every traditional event and holiday in this part of the world has pretty much destroyed the spirit of most holidays for me by turning them into yet another stressor in my already hectic life. For me, thanksgiving stands alone as the last bastion of holiday sanity.

I have so much to give thanks for. I am blessed with good health and I am surrounded by people I love and appreciate. Once a person has that, what else really matters?

“Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.” - William Arthur Ward

The Path Taken

When I began studying kung over thirty years ago, I had no idea what I was getting into. Everyone has their reasons for beginning but those reasons rarely apply to why we continue. I’ve been training a lifetime and it may be cliche to say, but kung fu has changed my life.

I could fill a page with the list of benefits I have received from training in kung fu. In fact, that list grows on a daily basis. The lifestyle I enjoy is due to my health and my perspective — both of which I owe to my study of the art.

The greatest gift kung fu has given me is in the form of opportunity. I have met some of the most amazing people currently walking the planet because of the art I study. How many can say they ever met their personal hero, let alone go on to become friends with them? I’ll be starting November by travelling to spend time with a couple of my mentors. The trip is sure to recharge my batteries and stoke the fire.

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.” - Plutarch (45 AD - 120 AD)