Right Effort

The never-ending quest to streamline and idealize our school’s curriculum continues to dominate my thoughts. Each time the curriculum is evaluated, the more convinced I am of its efficacy and the more certain I am that reform is required in how the curriculum is approached, not the curriculum itself. Teaching a subject that is based upon eastern philosophies to westerners is a challenge. Calm mindfulness tends to not even be an afterthought in a society where most are programmed to consume as much as they can as fast as they can. There will always be those who are more concerned with the rank than the skill the rank represents.

SRKF’s curriculum is a tool to help our students achieve an ideal. Effort is the key but effort does not guarantee skill. Only mindful application of effort toward a conscious ideal will generate results. The goal must always be to acquire the skill. Skill makes a rank irrelevant.

“A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.” - Lau Tzu (604 - 531 BC)

Humanity

"Richard Renaldi Shows us humanity as it could be, as most of us as wish it would be."

How cool is this?

Sifu Peter McBurney

Our Chinese New Year banquet last night left me with my usual feelings of relief and regret. The night represented the culmination of years of dedication, climaxing with two months of relentless rehearsals and practice. Getting that monkey off my back brings a relief to my spirit but there can be no doubt that the months-long focus that last night brought to my life will be missed. The sense of accomplishment and camaraderie that comes from something like this is life changing.

My feelings of gratitude are never more intense than they are after an event like last night. I am so lucky to have so many amazing, good people in my life and I am humbled by the dedication and drive that I get to witness everyday. I do recognize how fortunate I am.

Last night’s event did not go without a few hiccups. I guess that is to be expected when there are so many unknowns that come into play with a new venue. One hiccup that is weighing heavily on my mind was my failure to announce Sifu Peter McBurney’s promotion to 3rd Degree Black Belt. Sifu McBurney was unable to attend the banquet so the announcement completely slipped my mind.

Peter McBurney began training in Shotokan Karate in Ottawa many years before our school here even existed and he is one of the most skilled and dedicated martial artists that I have ever come across. Peter does not say much as he prefers to do most of his talking with his actions. He is a formidable opponent on the mats and a valued friend to all who earn his respect. For me to be able to call him my student is something I will always be proud of.

“It is good to have an end to journey towards but it is the journey that matters in the end.” - Ursula K. Le Guin (b. 1929)

Succession Planning

I had the opportunity to attend the Ging Wu Chinese New Year banquet yesterday. It was my first opportunity to attend after a long absence. Grandmaster Stan Lee was a great influence in my life and I will always appreciate and value everything he did for me. It is important to me to respect his legacy and support the organization that he built.

It struck me last night how much the martial arts community in Alberta has changed. The core group of instructors are getting up there in age and it is a little unsettling to think about where things may be in twenty years. Alberta has produced some of the top instructors in the country and I have been blessed to have trained with and under most of them. I hope everyone has a succession plan in place to ensure their legacy is preserved. Moreover, I hope whoever ultimately steps up to fill the void, do their predecessors’ legacies proud.

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more and  become more, you are a leader.” - John Quincy Adams (1767 - 1848)

Truth

There are days where the journalling is more difficult than others. Today is one of those days. I try to keep my journal focused on gratitude and mindfulness but today it is proving difficult for me to put aside the righteous rage that can overpower me when mindfulness exposes things that should shame us all. Poverty and war fill the news while I live my life in coddled isolation, almost oblivious to that harsh reality, shielded by my birthright.

One of my favourite quotes from Bruce Lee helps ground me on my rage days.

“Truth has no path. Truth is living and, therefore, changing. Awareness is without choice, without demand, without anxiety; in that state of mind, there is perception. To know oneself is to study oneself in action with another person. Awareness has no frontier; it is giving of your whole being, without exclusion.” - Bruce Lee (1940 - 1973)

Wu Wei

Wu wei is a concept of kung fu that I constantly remind myself to apply and this past year it has been especially challenging to keep it in front of me. The idea of non-striving (wu wei) is an elegant ideal that becomes easier if I keep myself in the moment. Staying in the moment I tend to just experience and go with the flow. There is much clarity to be found when I don’t have an overt agenda.

I find it ironic that a state of wu wei eludes me when I probably need it the most. When it comes to personal relationships I find it very difficult to let go when there is a conflict. I like to think that because I do not make close friends easily, I fight hard to keep these friends close even when it is evident that they are not of the same thinking. I also like to think that I hold myself 100% accountable for my situation so it is up to me to take the initiative in resolving my relationships. Those are both grounds I’d like to believe but I suspect the reason is far less altruistic. I have a feeling that my ego can’t deal with the fact that someone just does not value our relationship to the same degree as I do.

One thing I cannot deny or ignore is that the only guarantee in life is change. Everything is impermanent and I never forget that. I reflect upon this fact every day to help keep me grounded and stay in the moment. I recognize how I struggle to accept the impermanence of my relationships. I will only achieve a state of wu wei in personal conflict if I remove my ego and accept that the relationship has changed.

“The first step toward change is awareness. The second step is acceptance.” - Nathaniel Branden (b. 1930)

Hours In a Day

So if I plan on dedicating myself to something to the tune of two hours a week, how does that play out over a year?

2 hours/week X 52 weeks/year = 104 hours/year dedicated to my chosen endeavour. Given that there are 24 hours in a day, that presents me with a total of 4.3 days of dedication.

One thing I know for sure is life is going to throw some challenges my way that are going to lay waste to my best laid plans. If I have a great year and almost everything goes as planned,  I estimate my best case scenario would be to achieve an 80% success rate. That gives me, best case, 3.5 days a year dedicated to whatever I choose. Basically that means if I start now and go straight through without sleep and breaks, I can get in all the practice I am going to get in, for the entire year, by Wednesday at 10pm.

Given that a year’s worth of dedication is only Wednesday away, is anything impossible to achieve?

“We never shall have any more time. We have, and we have always had, all the time there is.” - Arnold Bennett (1867 - 1931)