Changes and adaptations

This past week has been all about adaptability.  Like the dandelions on my lawn who have learned to avoid my lawnmower by growing and seeding out 1cm from the ground.  Well the last couple weeks have been much like that, adapting to a couple health issues, back into the work schedule, helping with ball coaching.

I have been called out for work for the past couple weeks which has entailed jumping back and forth onto night shifts, then back to days and so on.  I have a real appreciation for you night shifters out there.  I feel like I am stuck in a revolving door of a fancy hotel, not sure if I am supposed to get out inside or outside, so instead I just keep riding.  It is pretty stressful on the body with disrupted sleep patterns and so forth.  Good on you folks that do this on a constant basis.  It is pretty messed up.

Anyhow, I have managed to fit some repetitions in near darkness which I am not sure if this is beneficial or just dangerous.  I much prefer the Kwoon.  In any case nothing too deep in this week’s blog, but I figure an update to the team is order. Currently can’t wait for the Pandamonium and will see most of you there.

Kung Fu Fusion

I recently evaluated where I am at with my Kung Fu, and it had nothing to do with my kicks or punches.  I evaluated where I was at with what Sifu Regier referred to as; “Believing in the system”.  I think when we first tie on the belt and take in our first class of Kung Fu we are entering a relationship similar to that of a vacuum salesman at our front door.  We approach with caution to determine if the salesperson genuinely believes that I would be better off with a Super Sucker 1000.

For me there was no real definitive time by which I can say that Kung Fu went from being a life add on, to becoming fused and a part of me.  The difference in those two perceptions however, is immense.  When something is an Add On, it is considered detachable, of little importance, easily sidelined, and even easier to drop altogether.

Some people will buy a Super Sucker 1000 after five minutes with the salesman, others may evaluate it for weeks.  The point is, Kung Fu fusion; I believe comes different for everyone.  For me, I know the process was slow. In fact it happened over a period of years.  In fact, I would even go so far as to say that it has only really been the last year that I have believed in the system.  I am not sure why it took so long.  Realistically I always liked what Kung Fu did for my life, I liked what it was doing in the lives of fellow students, and people who seemed to believe in the system already, really had no reason to lie.

What I do know, is that I believe I have arrived.  I am in a very different place now then I was even a year ago.  There are noticeable differences in the two perceptions.  When I miss a family event, I don’t feel guilty, I feel disappointed I couldn’t do both. When I miss a Kung Fu event, I don’t have resentment because I take my Kung Fu with me everywhere.  It’s fused, and it manifests itself in more than just 50,000 push-ups, it becomes integral in the way I think, the decisions I make, and my relationship.

One thing I am proud of, is that I did not quit for many years because I wasn’t fully invested in the system.   Making sure a Super Sucker 1000 is exactly what it claims to be takes time.  For me, that time meant periods of guilt, doubt, disengagement, resentment.  I think that is normal.  Realize that changes in your life of this enormity probably won’t happen fast, but they are very exceptional.  For those that are working through this, all I can say is stick with it, take a deep look at yourself at the end of this I Ho Chuan year, and whether you see it or not, I believe you will be one step closer to Kung Fu fusion.

The Action Plan

“Rather than giving up, as many ordinary people do, he will use his ordinariness to correct his errors, which is essential in the process of attaining mastery” Mastery, by Stuart Emery.

This next year of the I Ho Chuan may be a defining year like no other.  But, like all the others, a work schedule will inevitably complicate the process.  This is not a problem if I can define a well thought out plan of attack for this year.  Here are a couple of thoughts that come to mind.

First, I am going to define my goals.  I need to have a clear understanding exactly what I want to correct in the time that remains for the year of mastery.  Determining each and every improvement required in my Kung Fu is the life long journey that I will be on, however, this is where the success coach comes into play.  Now, I am a person that has a very high appreciation for people who offer there time in my accord, but strangely I rarely will reach out for help.  This has to change.  I am going to mine the resources I have available at Silent River somewhat selfishly and seek out the mentorship that is available.  With help, I will be able to drastically narrow my focus to a realistic amount of improvement for the most crucial requirements.

Once defined, I will systematically attack these required changes, and once again tap the help button on occasion for the most efficient way to improve.  Now, times away from the Kwoon on a work cycle are going to happen, but here is the plan.  Video.  Dropbox.  Critique. That simple.  Utilize video for review and really tackle the issues.

Now onto another point.  Seek incremental improvement.  I will not be throwing all items on the plate at once.  For me, the most successful way to iron out details is one item at a time.   Dividing my focus over too many items at once is not productive.  This is where the coaching can come into play once again. 

There are roughly 10 more months in the year of the sheep.  Past experience has proven there will be a great many highs and an equal number of lows.  “Reality Checks” as was explained by Sifu is part of the process of beating the lows.  When things get down and dirty, I will be calling in reinforcement.  Often, a low can encroach very sinisterly and all too often I am not even aware of it.  This is the importance of the blog, and as equally important the blog readers.  I am asking a huge favour in this respect, if you read a blog of mine and see something that might indicate struggle, I really hope that you would reach out.  Sometimes an uplifting comment can be the difference of swinging perspective into the right direction. 

Maybe my Dad or Grandpa used to say “make hay while the sun shines”.  My highest level of engagement is when I am home.  This is roughly January through to middle of May and varies as the fall encroaches.  Spring, summer can get busy…. So as I have always suggested, when I am home I focus on getting to the Kwoon as often as possible.  Taking advantage of the Pandamonium events, demos, forms seminar and so forth whenever possible results in drastic advancement.  I will use these times to my advantage, kinda like booster pads to get ahead of the curve before the work tries to stagnate any progress.

Reflection will be key throughout the year.  Evaluating where I have come from and where I am going will be a constant thing for me.  Reground and regroup, analyze the goal and stay dynamic.  Change what is not working and move forward.  This may be the best plan for now, but it may not be 3 months for now.  Since flying by the seat of my pants (I prefer to call it adaptability and being dynamic!) comes pretty natural to me, this should be easy!

T Minus 5 Days

“I said that in the time we have, I would make your wushu better than you could imagine and I will.  Your only responsibility to me is to practice and to learn.  My responsibility to you is much greater: Every time you think your task is great, think how much greater mine is.  Just keep this in mind: if you fail.”

~Grandmaster Pan  Qingfu (Excerpt from Iron and Silk written by Mark Salzman.)

Instructor and student responsibilities seem to be front and foremost on my mind at this time.  The grading date is so close now that I can taste it, and my thoughts seem mostly directed towards not wanting to disappoint my instructors.  Also my family who have done so much in order to allow me to put as much time as possible to training the last few months.  With a history as old as Kung Fu, Sifu’s that have invested in me for reasons I don’t always understand, I consider this to be an exceptional privilege and honor to even be a part of.  If I am successful there holds the equivalent challenge of improving my Kung Fu to that worthy of a black belt in the following months.  Keeping engaged, and not just maintaining but always improving.

So, with a little anxiety I am looking forward to being a part of this. Being the final week there is little more I can physically do to improve my strength, flexibility and cardio.  Mostly I understand that all of the training in the world is worth nothing if you do not enter the day healthy. Currently this means nursing an ankle injury so that it is ready to go.  With the day fast approaching, it may prove to be the most difficult week mentally of my training so far.

A SAI of Relief

There I go, leaving a trail of blood again.  The result of a Sai hastily dropped and intercepted by my big toe.  While I tape up my foot I pondered the steps required to learn a weapon. 

Learning a weapon can sure be hard.  There is the awkward introduction phase, where I typically go through a very simple, yet important process for my own self preservation.  This end is pointy, this side is sharp, this end is blunt, but still dangerous.  The weapon looks like it feels, awkward, gangly, cumbersome.  Pulling together any element of a form at this stage seems next to impossible.  Generally this stage is accompanied by thoughts that perhaps I bit off more than I could chew, perhaps I should have stuck with something more familiar……like a spoon or fork or something.

Then, and generally after the weapon has injured me in some capacity, I come to realize that this thing actually served a historical purpose which entailed more than a demonstration by a newbie.  With any luck, maybe I have realize just how the weapon functioned…well…as a weapon.  Generally a watermelon or two has met its demise by this time.  Spin, twizzle, slice, how did this historically serve its purpose?

Ah, then comes the relationship building.  Sometimes I don’t like my weapon, and often it won’t like me. Now is the time to splice any remnant of Kung Fu skill and form into the function of the weapon.  Maybe a bit of creativity can start to flow.   This stage generally means a bit of disappointment, as my aspirations for what the weapon is capable of is limited by my skill. As a result the form emerges rather simple, with nothing complicated.

If history has a habit of repeating, then I can look forward to the stage of testing boundaries. This means exceeding my abilities and move to what seems like a regression back to the awkward stage.  Mental note; place corks on the tips of the sharp bits, hockey helmet is probably a good idea for when I get to this stage this year.

With any luck, repetitions will pay off.  With any luck this process of self learning will be as fulfilling as the previous years.  But for now, let’s not rush through the steps, but rather enjoy the process, be patient and let things fall into place.  Just hopefully with less bleeding this time.

Life with Purpose

Widgets, zing zangs, wizamaroos, rickety rackets.  Stuff.  Consuming, wasting, ignoring.  I pull into the parking lot of a grocery box store and wade through the stifling, suffocating crowds pressed in by behemoth stacks of products clean to the ceiling.  I wonder how on earth I can teach my kids about entitlement when I myself have gone so wrong.  How do I convey to them the difference between wants and needs, to give rather than consume, to be aware rather than to ignore.

True value.  Somewhere from my childhood to now I have lost my way.  Five hundred years ago acquiring a food store was the requirement for survival.  Where did that instinct get so manipulated to an endless need for luxury.  What is so desperately missing that we feel a need to fill it with endless trinkets. 

We have lost what constitutes true purpose. Without purpose, we lose our sense of value.  We get bored, ignorant, complacent.  We fill that void the easiest way we can.

For myself, it is not a matter of not having purpose, it is losing sight of it.  Like progress in Kung Fu, often a reflection on our life purpose is also required. Where am I, what am I doing, and most importantly….why?

I challenge you to answer that, then seek to fulfill it.

Easter update

 Well, this blog is simply an update.  A good Easter weekend and a spring break are coming to a close.  . Numbers on repetitions were OK this week.  I did not get as far along with my Sai form as I wanted.  The focus for this week will be the Sai form, and as always working on flexibility, kicks, and horse stance.  I am going through curriculum like a mad man, theory and memory work.  So much I wish to accomplish, so little time.  The next couple weeks will need to be a school in efficiency.