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“They must often change, who would be constant in happiness or wisdom.” – Confucius (551 - 479 BC)

After fifteen years of blogging every week, this will be my last posting for the foreseeable future.

I began my blog as part of the requirements for the Ultimate Black Belt Test. My first posting went up on November 4, 2007 and I have not missed a weekly posting except when I was taking part in a UBBT event in Alabama without access to a computer or the internet. After Master Tom Callos retired the UBBT project, I continued my weekly blogging as an act of discipline to set an example for my students.

I have nothing but gratitude for everything that Tom Callos has brought into my life. So much of my current daily practice came about because of his guidance and encouragement. I have not regretted accepting and implementing his advice on anything, and the fifteen years of weekly blogging is probably the most powerful gift he has given me.

Not all of my posts were good or even pertinent. Often my postings were more about the discipline of following through with my promises and commitments as opposed to the thoughts and ideas I was recording. Regardless of the intent behind any particular post, I learned a lot about myself and the world around me from the process. No regrets.

My focus from this point on will be shifting from my own personal training and evolution to that of my students. I have been blessed with a long, prosperous career in the martial arts and I want to devote my remaining time to improving my student outcomes, influencing positive change in the martial arts industry, and promoting egalitarian ideals and initiatives within my community.

Ending my run is a bittersweet moment for me. I have mixed emotions about my decision but I am at peace.

“Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.” – Dr. Seuss (1904 - 1991)

Positive Cycles

Something I wrote for a student struggling to find the time to train . . . 

Everyday we are all faced with decisions. Sometimes success is only a positive decision away. It is a lot easier to make a positive decision when you have clarity in your goals. Why are you studying kung fu? Obviously you have spent years practicing it for a reason. If that reason is empowerment, then you already know that there are benefits to all aspects of your life when you train in kung fu. If your training is benefitting all aspects of your life, how can cutting kung fu to focus on other aspects of your life even make sense? 

You have separated your kung fu from your life to the point where it may have already just become yet another stressor. If your training is relegated to "When I have time", there really is no future in the art for you until that perspective/priority changes.

Think about your diet. Very few of us eat clean. We rush about our day sometimes only feeding ourselves with what is handy and convenient instead of mindfully consuming food that nurtures us. Yet when we consistently clean up our diet, we feel the immediate benefits - clarity of thought and reduction of stress. Those benefits give us more time to mindfully prepare our future meals. The cycle has now become self-perpetuating - in a positive way.

At the same time, it does not take much to let things slide. A day here and a day there where, in a weak moment, we let down our guard and eat something we know is not good for us but it is more convenient. Our clarity begins to erode and is not so clear, our thoughts not so efficient, and our stress begins to build. Once again this cycle now becomes self-perpetuating - in a negative way.

If you want to stay on a positive cycle, STAY ON A POSITIVE CYCLE! It really is that simple. If you want to get on a positive cycle, GET ON A POSITIVE CYCLE! That too is really that simple. There is no magic to earning a black belt. Train. If you do not want to train? Train! Positive cycles do not just randomly start. You need to make the correct decisions - one at a time, every time.

“Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose.” - Lyndon B. Johnson (1908 - 1973)

Year of the Tiger

Starting the lunar year with a banquet and the promotion of two students to the rank of black belt is the best way to begin the lunar year. Yes the banquet was only a virtual event for the second year in a row but it was inspirational nevertheless. The excitement that this brings is the best part of Chinese New Year and the busyness of hosting such an event is the worst. 

Of course a lot went wrong with such a technologically intense endeavour and those numerous glitches weigh on me. It is difficult to talk coherently when you are multi-tasking while putting out technical fires. The experience was not ideal but the frantic memories will serve as anchors to recall the positive experience of the event moving forward. 



Congratulations to Sifu Jackie Kohut and Sihing Kody Bjorkquist on earning your black belts. I am grateful that I was able to travel with the two of you on your mastery journeys these many years. You are an inspiration to me and everyone who has had the pleasure and honour to share the experience. 



“She who succeeds in gaining the mastery of the bicycle will gain the mastery of life.” — Susan B. Anthony (1820 - 1906)

Evolutionary Growth

We tend to, and have been conditioned to, expect instant and obvious results when we apply ourselves to accomplishing a specific goal. A person only needs to checkout the average gym in January every year and then compare the energy and crowds to what you see a couple of months later. All the potential and intent the new year brought has been mostly burned up by March.

What is missing for most people is the understanding of the importance of incremental progression. Lao Tzu has said that “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” On an intellectual level, we all understand that. On a practical level, very few accept this.

Approaching our progression and growth as an evolutionary process changes everything. Setbacks become gifts, hoops become ladders, and destinations become journeys. Our perspective and understanding can open doors of opportunity or it can slam them shut. It is either the biggest limitation to our success or the strongest catalyst in our personal growth.

"One can choose to go back toward safety or forward toward growth. Growth must be chosen again and again; fear must be overcome again and again." - Abraham Maslow (1908 - 1970)

Oh the People You Will Meet

The martial arts have given me everything that I hold dear in my life. Kung fu has forged my spirit and made me the person I am today. Of all the benefits the art provides, it is the people it has brought into my life that I value the most. 

I met you for the first time in Greensboro, Alabama in 2008. Our mutual association with Tom Callos brought us together to build a house for a family in need in Hale County. I met a lot of great people because of my association with Tom Callos and the Ultimate Black Belt Test but you are the person who stands out for me.

You exemplify what I value in a martial arts master. There is the undeniable skill and outstanding leadership always on display and then below the surface are the truly exceptional traits that I admire - compassion, kindness, and extraordinary engagement.  I definitely want to be just like you when I grow up.

You have always been generous with your time when it comes to me. From calling me at work to check up on me to having me over for supper when I just happened to be in the neighborhood. I often wonder if you understand what that has meant to me over the years. 

Soke Dave McNeill is turning 80 on Tuesday. In typical Master McNeill fashion, he is celebrating with 800 pushups on Sunday. My students and I will be joining him in his celebration by doing 800 pushups each. Happy Birthday Master McNeill! Thank you for everything you have brought to my life. 

“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.” – Henry Brooks Adams (1838 - 1913) 

Mastery Again

Mastery is an all or nothing thing. Either you are on the path or you are off the path. There is no final destination, only the path. There are no deadlines, nor is procrastination possible, on the mastery path.

If you are waiting for a date before applying yourself; if you are putting off work until the planets better align, you are in the clutches of mediocrity. Sometimes the difference between mediocrity and mastery can be just a matter of recognizing where you are and what you are doing.

“Do every act of your life as though it were the very last act of your life.” - Marcus Aurelius (121 AD - 180 AD)

Mastery and Perfection

The pursuit of mastery is unforgiving and relentless and I suspect that is why it is a most rewarding and fulfilling undertaking. Apply mastery in one area and it will invariably permeate into other aspects of your life. It is the gift that keeps on giving.

Mastery is not something that can be negotiated or compromised. It is a binary proposition. Excuses have no effect in persuading mastery to give ground. Either you are on the path or you are not.

Perfection may sound similar to mastery but it is not the same thing. Mastery is a journey, perfection is a destination. So many students of mastery overlook that fact and find themselves pursuing something that is impossible. Perfection is a great motivator to keep one on the path but if success is only measured by the end result, failure will always prevail. Only in the pursuit of mastery will we ever approach perfection but perfection implies stasis which is impossible. Everything is changing, especially ourselves.

Perfection is a goal, not a state. Mastery is a journey, not a destination.

“Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.” - Vince Lombardi (1913 - 1970)

Community

In 2008 we ended our Pandamonium by making handprints of everyone who participated in that final day and using those prints to create a quilt. The completed quilt was then auctioned off at our Chinese New Year banquet with the proceeds donated to charity. I won the auction for the quilt and I have had it with me ever since. We took out the quilt yesterday while creating more room in our linen closet. It brought back a lot of memories, including the memory of my mother in law who constructed the quilt. She passed away four years after the quilt was completed. 

Silent River Kung Fu has raised in excess of $300,000 over the years. Our community activism has impacted not only our local community but our global community as well. Every project we complete creates more awareness for issues many of us never have to think about. 

Memories are more vibrant when you have something to anchor them in place. My memories of our 2008 Pandamonium are among my favourite.

“The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it's indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it's indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it's indifference.” - Elie Wiesel (1928 - 2016)

Friends

I am sitting in the Denver airport writing this after a whirlwind weekend spent with friends. Yesterday Tom Callos, my friend and mentor, was recognized by the martial arts industry for his legendary contributions over the past few decades. I attended as one of the surprise guests who flew down for this special event. To cap it all off, Tom was also awarded his BJJ Black Belt and he surprised his girlfriend with a marriage proposal. Like I said, a whirlwind.

I owe a lot to kung fu for the incredible friendships I have made over the years. My life would be so different and less vibrant if I had taken another path. I am where I need to be.

“I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. “ - Robert Frost (1874 - 1963)

Serendipity

Things do not always go as planned but sometimes that can be a good, no, great thing. This week was a gathering of my teammates in the last ever Ultimate Black Belt Test. I was ecstatic that I was able to arrange things to give myself this opportunity to personally connect with an amazing bunch of martial artists from across the continent. I teach my students that a big part of success is being in the right place at the right time. We can’t always control the right time but we have a lot of control over the right place. For me, the right place this past week was Portland, Oregon.

Our first morning together opened with Suicide Prevention training. I’m a huge advocate for mental health awareness and have been trying to make it a bigger part of Silent River Kung Fu’s curriculum. Statistically 60% of Canadians are touched by mental health issues, either directly or indirectly, in their lifetime. This type of training could not be more relevant to self defence.

It was at this point that things began to veer off plan. My hotel breakfast did not settle well and the start of my two day love affair with all the restrooms at Aim High Martial Arts kicked off. I was sidelined from the mats for the next day’s training of Aim High’s black belt candidates and relegated to a spectator for all the team meals, including the Hawaiian food. Now comes the serendipitous part.

During the black belt candidates’ class, I met someone who I would not have met if I had been busy teaching on the mats. Jennifer St. John is a high level TaiJi practitioner from Florida who just happened to be in Portland to watch her nephew’s karate class - the same one I just happen to also be at. I often talk about life being defined by specific moments. My meeting Jennifer was one such defining moment. Her calm wisdom and insights resonated with me and her passion inspired me. We have exchanged contact information and I am hoping to maximize the opportunity that has been offered to me by fostering a closer friendship with her.

The week ended too quickly for my liking but despite my stomach issues, I came away inspired and motivated. However, saying goodbye to my teammates and getting on the plane in Portland was not the end of it. Our plane was delayed at our arrival gate in Seattle so we ended up missing our connecting flight. We spent the next hour getting another flight sorted out and ended up with a free lunch on the airline and a new flight home in first class.

You would think that was the best part but it wasn’t. Getting ready to board our flight home, I notice one of my longtime heroes standing ten feet away from me - Grant Fuhr!! He is also on his way home to Edmonton and is sitting within arms reach of me right now as I type this from my first class seat. I watched him play for his entire career but I have never had the opportunity to meet him - until now. Cross that off my bucket list.

serendipity | noun:  The occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way.

Taking Stock

The one aspect of my UBBT this year that has been constantly challenging me is my journal content. I have been publicly journaling every week since November 4, 2007. When I started my journal I was blogging for myself - venting and musing about things that weighed on my mind. When I was part of UBBT 6, our team completed the I Am Project that had directed journaling as part of our requirements. I found that process to be very stimulating and it took my journaling into a different direction. After completing UBBT 7 and UBBT 8, my journaling started to be directed more toward my students and my school. Today I find my journaling content alternating focus from my UBBT to my school and students, with less musing and venting. Venting is not as easy as it used to be without polarizing people. It seems no one really wants to open their minds to political or socio-economic views other than their own.

My training has been a bit of a dog show this year. I’ve had a couple of major physical setbacks that are making it difficult to push myself like I want to. I have an elbow issue that has been lingering from a rollerblading wipeout from July 2016. I finally had an ultrasound and x-ray that gave me a definitive diagnosis that does not make complete sense to me. The wipeout injured my elbow, the ultrasound and x-ray show inflammation that is being promoted by bone spurs. None of this surprised me except for what they say is the cause of my bone spurs - repetitive motion.  I have never heard of bone spurs being caused by soft tissue pulling on the bone repetitively. The repetitive motion I have going on in the elbow is the half million or so pushups I have completed over the past 10 years. Not too sure what I can do about this.

The more serious physical issue I have is my right knee. I have had five surgeries on my knees to date and the right one does not have a lot of cartilage left. I am definitely feeling it these past two years where it almost feels like bone on bone. No high impact techniques for that leg goes without saying. What is frustrating is that when I use my left leg, my right cannot support me without pain.

Setbacks and injuries are nothing new, nor unexpected. I just have to keep myself strong mentally and make sure I keep putting one foot in front of the other.

“"Maybe that's enlightenment enough: to know that there is no final resting place of the mind; no moment of smug clarity. Perhaps wisdom... is realizing how small I am, and unwise, and how far I have yet to go." - Anthony Bourdain (1956 - 2018)

UBBT Update

Well this past week is not one I am sorry to see in my rear view mirror. Between commitments to my parents and getting my cats to the vet, there was not a lot of Jeff time this week. I have been nursing an upper back injury the past month so I would think a down week like this might not necessarily be a bad thing. I have my doubts though. My back seems more tender than ever and I think I may be babying it a little too much. This week I test this theory and see how hard and far I can push it without a setback.

I was pretty pumped to have a chance to meet with my UBBT teammates on Friday. With my own I Ho Chuan team, I see the value of monthly meetings to fuel engagement. I have been in multiple UBBTs but this was the first team meeting I can recall. Furthermore, my new daytime schedule was actually going to allow me to participate in an event that, in the past, would have been impossible for me because of career commitments. Imagine my disappointment when I was unable to log into the meeting. Being the only international member of the team can have its drawbacks. Hopefully we can get the bugs ironed out by the next meeting so the system will accept international calls.

Now that the snow is pretty much gone, I will be hitting the bike and roller blades as part of my daily routine. That is once I get my school database firing on all cylinders. I am quite a bit ahead on that goal but I am at a stage where it is a full time job during the transition. I am hoping to get enough accomplished today on that front to allow me to introduce some new activities into my daily routine.

“Anticipate the difficult by managing the easy.” - Lao Tzu 

Working Smarter

I am two months into the Year of the Dog and I am three months into my new life of teaching kung fu for a living. Nothing is what I expected it to be at this point but some wonderful things are happening.

I have never been what I would call a smart athlete. I have endured many injuries due to my recklessness and aggressive approach to things. My approach has got me banned from go kart tracks and self preservation is the reason I have never pursued racing motorcycles professionally. Risk taking has never been something I have shied away from.

Two months in I am running into the familiar aches and injuries that accompany me in my training, but this time there is a noticeable difference. This time I am noticing the injuries while they are still in their infancy and I am adjusting my regime to mitigate their affect on me and my progress. I am simply working smarter.

This new approach had got me wondering why it had to take me over thirty years to begin practicing what I preach to my students - “patience, trust, and progressing wisely.” I have never been ‘that guy’ who does not put up before asking others to do the same. Something else is at play. What has changed is time. I now have the time to do things right. I am no longer searching for a spare moment here or there to get in some form reps or a set of push ups. I no longer push through the injury, I work around it. I am working smarter.

I am excited to see what I can accomplish this year. Life is good and kung fu rocks.

“Once you have mastered time, you will understand how true it is that most people overestimate what they can accomplish in a year and underestimate what they can achieve in a decade.” - Tony Robbins (b. 1960)

Taking Stock

One of the big reasons that I challenged the UBBT this year was the major lifestyle change I would be facing. I am the better part of two months into my new life and I have to say, everything is great.

My training is going well. I am meeting my targets despite an early shoulder injury that has slowed me down. It really helped that I was prepared for this and had already structured my daily repetitions around this expected issue. I had a tune up in my chiropractor’ s office today and feel an improvement despite all the tears I shed during his active release torture.

My diet and mindful eating has improved greatly. Being home to make my own meals and eat them fresh is something new for me. I think this is the thing I enjoy the most about my new lifestyle.

Actually what I probably enjoy the most about living this way is how my concept of time has changed. I do what needs to be done. I need more sleep, I sleep. I need to get a chiropractic tune up, I get the tune up. I need groceries, I get groceries. Life is good - I do what I want when I want.

The biggest challenge I face as part of the 2018 Ultimate Black Belt Test is engaging with my teammates. Facebook is my least favourite place to visit but when I do, it is a massive time suck. I may have a different approach to time now but that approach has reinforced how precious time is to me. I am not going to log into Facebook until I have accomplished everything that I want to accomplish in my day first. That may mean untimely reading of my teammates’ posts but until I can get this completely balanced, it will have to do.

“If you love life, don’t waste time, for time is what life is made up of.” - Bruce Lee (1940 - 1973)

My Wagon

I am two weeks into the new lunar year and yesterday I had the first meeting with my Year of the Dog I Ho Chuan team. The first meeting of the year is always fairly loose and usually short. This early in everyone is engaged and making progress. Once the snow starts to melt, things will change for a lot of people. Priorities get challenged by the new opportunities offered by the new season.

I challenged my team to stay true to their commitments, especially their journaling commitment. If you fall of the wagon somewhere down the line, it is important that your journal up to that point has defined just what wagon you have fallen off of. Knowing where you are and what you are doing is key if you want to get to somewhere else.

So what wagon am I on? After ten years of dedicating myself to mastery, the wagon I am on is quite a bit different than the one I have been riding up to now. Back in 2009, after UBBT 6, I achieved effortless effort in my kung fu. The structure I had established kept me on track and made it easy to achieve my physical and spiritual goals. So what is different?

Two events, almost a year apart, woke me up to the mediocrity I had allowed to seep into my process over the past ten years. The first event was the death of Master Margitte Hilbig on December 27, 2016. Margie was a huge influence in my life and losing her is still something I have difficulty comprehending. The amount of knowledge that is now inaccessible to the world is unfathomable. The second event was my visit with Master Dave McNeill on November 13, 2017. During my visit Master McNeill let me know that he was going to be retiring from teaching. Once again, the amount of knowledge that would be retiring with him is devastating to think about.

In my conversation with Master McNeill, he suggested I take part in the upcoming UBBT and dedicate the year to Master Hilbig. Up to that day, I had decided that this year would not be a good year for me to take on the UBBT. I had massive responsibility to my own I Ho Chuan team, I was finishing up my BMET career, and I was only a year into my marriage. Not to mention my kung fu was going great — I had logged over a half million pushups over the past ten years, and I had not slowed down since my first UBBT. The second I began to formulate the sentence required to tell Master Dave all of this, I realized I had to do the UBBT. If everything was going so great and I was firing on all cylinders, why would I hesitate?

Thanks to that conversation, I was brought to reality as to where I was. I was a long way from where I thought I was. A lot of mediocrity was present in my training. I had chronic inflammation in my shoulders and my knees. I may have been training hard but I was not training smart.

So back to the wagon that I am on. I am retooling everything I do. My daily structure is gone, and I am starting from scratch. First thing I am focusing on is the quality of my pushups first, quantity second. I am keeping up with my daily 180 but it is taking me a lot longer to complete them. The result has been less inflammation.

I am spending more time this year eating more mindfully. I am not changing what I am eating, I am just consuming it while being more present. Who would have thought that something as simple as consuming an apple could be accomplished so much better?

I am beginning and ending every day with gratitude for Margie Hilbig and everything she has brought, and continues to bring, into my life. I miss her but I continue to learn from her.

With those three main focuses providing the scaffolding that I will build my year around, the rest of my personal goals will fall into place. Perspective is everything for me when it comes to staying on track. Staying physically engaged and mentally present while I begin and end every day with gratitude will keep my perspective clear.

“I believe it's strikingly important to remember that when you know better, you can do better. With higher levels of awareness, you can make smarter choices. And the more clarity you get as to who you want to become, the quicker you can start making the choices need to get you there.” - Robin S. Sharma (b. 1969)

I Hate the Beginning

I had a visit with my chiropractor this week to get a tune up on my famous, or should I say infamous, tight back. It is never a pleasant experience getting that thing realigned. It fights to maintain whatever shape it currently finds itself in. On one hand that is a great attribute in that I hardly ever have spine woes. On the other hand it absolutely sucks trying to get that thing back into alignment if something is out. A visit to my chiropractor can be like going a couple of rounds with Mike Tyson.

At the end of my treatment we stuck up a conversation about my Ultimate Black Belt Test and my physical requirements. My chiropractor is pleased that I have taken the time to heal my past injuries before taking on this challenge, but he acknowledged the frustration and dread that must come from starting over. It is a lot easier to maintain a lifestyle and structured training regime than it is to disrupt it to tend to an injury and and then begin again. I hate starting. I love the feeling that comes from training hard and consistently so that the entire ordeal becomes effortless effort. The part that sucks is every moment before I get to that point.

I have enough mileage on my chassis to have logged my share of experience with starting over. Every time I do, I remind myself of how much I hate it and how this time I am going to be careful and train more intelligently so that I will never have to start over again. I am very motivated to get it right this time.

“Be willing to be a beginner every single morning.” - Meister Eckhart (1260 - 1327)

What Defines Me

This week CBC Radio ran a story about the The Ground Floor Choir. This is a choir that will take anyone, whether you can sing or not. Many of the people in the choir are disabled. An aha moment for me occurred when one of the participants, a senior with cerebral palsy, stated that she won’t let her disability define her. What a perfect attitude.

This got me thinking about myself and what it is that defines me. I think anyone who grew up with me or who currently trains with me would vouch for my bad knees as big defining factors. Yes my kung fu also defines me but my kung fu itself is defined by my bad knees. Do I really want to be the guy known for his bad knees? How did I let this happen? Five surgeries, custom braces, chronic limp - yeah that definition is pretty legit, but I used to be known as a fierce fighter, a decent forms competitor, and a guy who could really handle a spear. Now I am the guy with the bad knees.

My mastery journey has to address this. I have and always will have bad knees, but I do not have to let them define me.

“You come up against challenges in life, and it’s how you deal with them that defines you. - Harry Kane (b. 1993)

Core Requirement = Core Value

My participation in the UBBT this year is timely. I have been a disciple of the process for ten years and it has worked well for me. The problem is, when you focus on mastery consistently, mediocrity can creep into the process. This year I am going through major change in my life. It is a perfect opportunity to retool, refocus, and clear the path of all the mediocrity that has slithered in.

I have been completing in excess of 50000 pushups and sit-ups every year since 2008. To date, I have completed and logged 538,850 pushups. I feel this core requirement is the foundation upon which all my accomplishments are built. No matter how busy I get in a day, no matter how many things conspire to keep me from working on my kung fu, I end every day with this accomplishment logged. This has ensured that every day results in one step forward toward my goals. I go to bed every night with that positive acknowledgement to end my day and begin the next.

My pushups and sit-ups have not been without setbacks and problems. I have developed some significant shoulder issues due to the way I have been doing the pushups - quantity over quality. I have been completing my pushups in sets of 100 and that has had me neglecting the micro muscles that support the shoulder joint and has only served to reinforce the big muscles. This has caused me to drastically restrict my pushups over the past 6 months while I rehabilitate my shoulders. My goal this year is to complete 180 quality pushups every day with no more than 30-40 in a set. I want to focus on technique so that my shoulders continue to improve while they are strengthened. The challenge this will pose for me is related to my daily structure that has served me so well these past 10 years. I no longer can get my pushup requirement completed before 7am everyday and I will not be able to pad my numbers with the same quantity of extras to allow me to recover during injuries or illness. My intent is that the more mindful approach will limit the number of injuries I suffer from improper technique.

“Don’t waste your life. No one chooses mediocrity but many settle for it. Never settle.” - Anonymous

Slippery Slope

Future success is a product of what we do with past failures and the prevailing attitude that we carry forward from those failures. In reality, failure is only final if we quit trying. As long as effort is still being applied forward, failure is valuable experience. Once effort ceases, failure becomes absolute.

We make promises everyday. These promises are based upon our best intentions, but the problem that comes into play is - they are not always based upon our track record.

The issue we create for ourselves is that once we start breaking promises, it can be difficult to recognize when we are making emotional decisions and commitments that we are ill-equipped to follow through on. It does not take much before breaking promises becomes normalized, as do failure and mediocrity.

It is a slippery slope to travel once we neglect our commitments and promises.

“Commitment is an act, not a word.” - Jean-Paul Sartre (1905 - 1980)

The Green Stripe

I have been studying the martial arts for most of my life.  Thirty five years of training has taught me a lot about myself and the world.  Everything good in my life today is what it is because of my kung fu. My dedication to my art has never been a sacrifice but rather an investment that has generated massive returns. My life is blessed and I owe it all to kung fu.

There has not been a day in the past thirty-five years that I have not used my kung fu. I used it to build a body that is as healthy and strong as it was when I was a teenager. I have used it to  become mindful of the miracles that exist in every moment.   I have used my kung fu to become a more compassionate and cognizant human being.  Kung fu has made me who I am and my friends and family love me, warts and all.

Somewhere down the line, we in the martial arts industry have allowed the term ‘martial arts’ to become hijacked by people and sports who wish to reduce it to the lowest common denominator - fighting.  As long as you are wearing the fancy uniform and the coloured belt, you are a  marital artist. “Who needs to meditate when that stuff does not work on the street? Respect? Of course I know respect. I’ll teach respect to anyone foolish enough to step into the ring with me. “

Where is the value in martial arts? Is the only value garnered through weaponizing yourself so that you can handle yourself in a street fight? If so, I have to question your character and your lifestyle if your training is about addressing your fear of being beat in a street fight. Each of us is infinitely more likely to have our butts kicked by our diets, our limiting beliefs, and our acceptance of mediocrity than we are by a physical assault.

Thirty-five years of using my kung fu everyday and not a single street fight to show for it. Do I lead a charmed life and have somehow avoided being victimized, or could it be that kung fu has given me the emotional intelligence as well as the physical ability to live my life without fear?

Defeating an opponent has little to do with the martial arts. The only person I compete with is myself. I end every day different, hopefully better, than I started the day. Kung fu pushes me to understand myself, like myself, and push myself to improve.

“When people ask me about what I learned from martial arts, I don't talk about favorite punches or kicks, or about fights won or lost. I talk about learning self-discipline, about ethics and manners and benevolence and fairness.” - Jonathan Maberry (b. 1958)