Reflections

I have written and deleted this twice now, so hopefully I won’t have to do it again. I just have no idea where to go with this. But it is a commitment that I intend to keep.

I think I have grown over the past year. I have not reached all of the goals that I have set for myself, and that’s okay. I am finally at a point with my ankle that I have accepted the limitation, have begun to train smarter (most of the time), and now just work around it, as I have learned to with my ribs.

Christmas was quiet this year, and I appreciate the extra couple of days off that I took. It was something I desperately needed without truly realizing it. I watched my girls open their gifts, and I witnessed something special. There is nothing like Christmas through a child’s eyes. It is full of wonder, and amazement, as well as innocent belief.

As they opened their gifts, they stopped long enough to appreciate them, and get completely excited before they would move on to the next. They were in awe that Santa ate the cookies, drank the milk, took the reindeer food, and even left a short note of thanks.

And of course I treasure the gifts they gave me, as they were homemade, from the heart, and the excitement of giving made it so special. That is Christmas for me.

I am thankful for the gifts of my girls, and my family. I am fortunate to have them, and to be able to celebrate this holiday without any fear of consequences. Living in Canada allows me many freedoms, that I often take for granted. I try to keep it in front of me at all times, but sometimes it is easy to forget.

I am also thankful for my Kung Fu family, and the support of that community. It has been, and will continue to be my safe place to be.

Peace to all.

Loyalty

Kwan Kung is traditionally known as a red faced warrior, with a long beard and is known to wear a green robe. His weapon was a Kwan Do, which was named Green Dragon Crescent Blade.

Out of the three Generals, Kwan Kung (also known as Guan Yu) was known for his loyalty. Along with Zhang Fei, he served under warlord Lei Bui during the Eastern Han Dynasty. The three, Lei Bui, Kwan Kung and Zhang Fei considered each other brothers, and thus went everywhere together. Kwan Kung, after being separated from his brothers, spent many years trying to find them, and eventually reunited with them, all the while, serving and being loyal to whichever warlord he was under at the time.

Loyalty means to be faithful to someone, or a cause, or to beliefs. One can look at it as having unwavering support and not influenced by external forces.

To whom are we loyal to? Two sisters, who might be at odds at least once a day, will stand together, loyal in the face of adversity. Any meaningful relationship, will hopefully also stand together, loyal, during times of happiness and trials.

Loyalty should also be shown to the Martial Art to which you have trained. Your instructors dedicate their time and passion to passing on their knowledge to the student, and so loyalty dictates the same dedication and passion from the student. Our knowledge gets passed down, generation by generation. By keeping our art as pure as we can, we ensure that egos do not dictate our loyalty. The purity of the art, keeps the passion alive, and keeps us humble to our roots.

As a kwoon, we make sacrifices for ourselves, and to our fellow students and instructors for the good of our community. That loyalty enables us to continue to train with each other, and to learn without prejudice. It is with respect to our Kung Fu and its rich history, that we are loyal. It is an honour to train in the art of Kung Fu, and I am grateful for the opportunity to learn Kung Fu, to teach it and pass on my knowledge.

The art of Kung Fu is versatile, and is a way of life. It isn’t simply kicking and punching. Kung Fu to me is empathy, compassion, self defense (physical, mental and environmental), hard work, passion, humble, and is in some way, a part of every moment in my life.

It didn’t start out that way. I began for self defense, and before I knew it, it had enveloped me, and I cannot picture my life without it. There is always something to learn from those around me, no matter the belt level. I learn everyday, and I am thankful for that opportunity. Loyalty is important in the martial arts - how else do you become so proficient that your body reacts without a thought?

Fragments

Some days I struggle to find something to write about, and other days, there are many things that would make a very long blog. And it’s funny that at this moment, I am struggling whereas two days ago I wondered how I could get it all down. I have no idea where to go today, but I skipped last week, so today is a must.

I have started doing daily pushups and situps, but due to illness this week, I am now behind. I also strained my ribs doing the pushups, so I also have to back off on those. And so it goes. My ankle is also sore again, but that is from the uneven ground of packed snow. Big sigh.

I have decided to add repetitions of Tai Chi into my daily routine. I love the way I feel doing it, and I think it is going to be really good for me mentally. I need to work in all my forms as well as some techniques.

On another note, I discovered this past Monday that the block heater I paid to have put in my car, wasn’t installed. Thankfully my car started this week, and I had it put in this past Friday. But I am still missing the English manual for the car, and the part for my jack. And I have only gotten the runaround from the salesperson. Supposedly it will all be in the mail tomorrow, since I don’t have time to wait for someone who disappears when you get there.

My kids impressed me last week. They had to deal with an emergency situation, and they took care of it calmly. They made the right phone calls, and knew where to find the information they needed. I am so proud of them. And my oldest turned nine. Oh, how they grow...

Passive and Passionate

Teaching kung fu is important to me, as is training for myself. I have a more passive approach to teaching compared to other instructors at the school, and I do worry somewhat that it affects how I am seen.

I have my way of doing things, and the approach I take is mine. However, I find it very difficult to say what is on my mind, and to stand tall when others who are higher in rank are also around. I am a pretty new blackbelt, and I feel I still have a need to prove myself worthy of it to myself and my peers. Wearing it is a privilege not a right, and I hope I never forget that.

I was asked by Sifu Playter, to review the cane form with the I Ho Chuan class on Friday night. I am pretty passionate about this one, as it has kept me going through my ankle injury for the past year. I was nervous, and I feel it impacted my ability to pass on that passion, and inspire the students. However, since we need to cover it again next class, I have another chance to inspire them, and I know I can do better.

I think my personal training is going well though. I am learning a lot of new things, and I am feeling more confident about it. On December 01, I will be once again tackling a combination of pushups and situps to hit the 150 per day mark. I have been doing them every day, however I have no idea how many I am accumulating. It felt really good last year, when I had the assignment the first time, to see how many I could do, and to watch the numbers climb. It was a really good motivator for me.

I also am working on the demo for the Chinese New Year banquet. I am excited about this, but nervous at the same time. However, I think it is going to be awesome no matter what. The kids are excited, and that really helps me a lot.

Until next week...

Great big sigh (or a cute sock monkey!)

I have been feeling restless lately. This usually happens every few years for me, and ends up involving a move, or a new job or a new car, or something relatively drastic.

I love my VW. It’s a fun and yet very reliable car, and I have had no desire to part with it. I am okay with my job (it isn’t my dream job by any means). It has moments that I would love to leave, but I like the hours and the flexibility it offers, not to mention a half decent paycheck. I looked into moving, but the costs are ridiculous. I discovered that my rent is pretty cheap comparatively, so moving is out of the question for now. (I figure I can maybe rearrange some things in my apartment for a different look or something).

So that got me thinking about learning. I would love to learn something new again. Preferably something artistic - painting, chinese calligraphy, or almost anything at this point. I am interested in yoga, belly dancing, and maybe some other fitness class. And while I am still looking into this for the spring, I ended up with a change I wasn’t really looking for.

I traded in my beloved egg, and got a new car. It’s a city golf just like my last one, but it’s newer, has a sunroof, and is silver. We need a fun new nickname now, as “the egg” just doesn’t work so well anymore. I didn’t plan this at all. I got a letter in the mail from the dealer, and they made me an offer that was worth considering. So I considered, and had a shiny new car as of Friday. Funny how things work out. I ended up with a change, without even looking for it.

Too bad I have to go to work tomorrow...

National Bullying Awareness Week Nov. 15 - 21, 2009

Bullying is an issue, both for children and adults. It is something that Silent River Kung Fu takes seriously, as bullying is absolutely unacceptable. No one should be made to feel small, and worthless, so that another may feel some sense of power. It leaves children (and adults) suffering from humiliation, poor grades and crushed spirits. And it can have a lasting impact on how they see themselves and the world around them.

Our children’s curriculum teaches our students conflict resolution, and ways of setting personal boundaries. It is important that we raise the awareness, and provide the tools to help children (and adults) address the situation in a constructive manner, and stop bullying in it’s tracks. Confidence is a key component of stopping bullying.

Bullying is everyone’s responsibility. It is something that doesn’t just go away, and needs constant attention to protect those affected. As a community, we need to be aware of when it happens. We need to incorporate ways to change the attitudes of the community, so that it is everyone’s business.

We need to remember, that bullying is NOT a normal part of growing up.

Bullying not only affects the the direct individuals, it also affects the children who witness it, and as adults, it is important that we act, and not turn the other cheek.
Bullying changes over time as well. There are many forms of bullying - verbal, physical, and cyber to name a few. There is exclusion - where someone is left out of things on purpose, and gossiping is one form also.

We need to take a stand on bullying. It isn’t right, and there are so many individuals out there that need our community’s support.

On the Alberta Governments website, there are some resources to give some extra information for us as parents, educators, and peers to use to help raise awareness on bullying, and to help combat it.

The bullying hotline phone number is 1-888-456-2323.
Websites to check out are:

www.bullyfreealberta.ca
www.B-free.ca

Mmmm, Soup...

I have down sick this whole last week, and I haven't quite licked it yet. I don't think I have ever been this exhausted before and I think I slept most of this past week. I think I logged more sleep this week, than I have in the past month. Wow.

I regret I missed the Pandamonium - hopefully it was fun, and we raised funds and awareness for some really great causes.

Well, this chick needs some soup (and/ or comfort food) and more sleep.......