Simple Things

   The simple things. Breathing, sleeping, eating, mobility, etc. Little things I tend to take for granted. I have, so far, had an extraordinarily easy life, in my opinion. By easy I mean I have never had a major disease or catastrophic accident that have left me incapacitated or unable to live a full and beautiful life. I am gainfully employed, I am in control of both my high blood pressure and my asthma (thank you Dr Johnson), I have a beautiful wife who has gifted me a life I could only have dreamt of. I can not and will not complain as I know that all of that could vanish in the blink of an eye. 

   Life can change direction in an instant so I live my path to its fullest. I enjoy my ability to take a deep breathe (do you? - try one now - ahh sweet isn't it!), I savor my meals, I love to my fullest, I smile every chance I get, I laugh, I remember those I have lost, I cherish those I still have. I know my years are limited, more behind me than in front of me, I am mortal, I will die, but I will do so with a smile because I have lived and loved. Every disappointment and heart break is proof that I can love, that I cherish life and the rollercoaster it brings.

   This brings me to two recent experiences. 

   Tuesday in the Kid's class, I tweaked my knee while standing up. It sucked, it hurt, it caught me off guard. I couldn't function the way I wanted at all, so annoying. But I compared it to those around me who have gone through so much worse than this, my wife for example, "tweaked" her knee and needed surgery because of it. So a little pain for a week was nothing on the grand scale of what it could have been. As of today I am at about 80% so I dodged a bullet there. A little TLC and some stretching and it should be back to my functional. 

   Second is way more in depth and personal. I decided not to grade this year. This was both a shock to me and a relief to me all at the same time. I fought with my ego for months over this, but thankfully reason prevailed over ego. From my forms to my demo, I knew I was not ready and to ask the grading board to waste their time when I knew I wasn't ready was both irresponsible and arrogant of me, plus it was unfair to them. I will grade some day, but only when I can convince myself that I am actually ready. I have so much to learn before that thought can ever be broached again.

Push Ups  16200

Sit Ups  16050

Sparring  800 min

1609KM  1896 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  515

Weapon Form  510

Mastery recited 55

Sea Legs

   My time away was great. Great food, amazing sights, cool new adventures and most of all, uninterrupted time with my wife. No phone calls, no work crises, no drama. Perfect. Sure there were bumps on the road, mostly to do with the flights (so bumps in the sky??), but it was all part of the adventure.

   One thing that was a bit of an eye opener was the waves, I never accounted for the waves being a land lubber and all. My plan was to find a quiet little corner to practice my Kung Fu. So I found a little nook where I could "work" (infinity pool area at the rear of the ship) but very quickly realized I hadn't taken into account that the term "sea legs" is a very real thing. I swayed, I stumbled, I bounced off things, I must have been very entertaining to watch. I quickly realized that my planned ten days of peaceful forms practice was not going to happen. Even slowing it down to sloth speed still could not prevent being unstable, I just couldn't predict when a wave would push or pull just enough to throw me off. It was fun stuff, I almost felt blindfolded and disconnected from my body, good stuff.

   It did teach me to keep better contact with the ground at all times, sort of a constant slide/side step thing, but that only helped a little, it would take a much longer cruise (😏) to figure that out.  

   Now to get back at it. I am excited for what tomorrow brings, I have Kung Fu to learn and I am open minded and ready to receive, see you on the mats....

Push Ups  15300

Sit Ups  14750

Sparring  800 min

1609KM  1896 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  510

Weapon Form  495

Mastery recited 55

Good Away, Bad Away

   It's tough to be away. This extended time off over the holiday break has been tough on me. To make it even tougher, Deb and I are heading out tomorrow for a 10 day cruise and won't be back until Jan 16th meaning my first class back will be Jan 19th, yikes. That's 31 days away from the Kwoon!! 

   Now I want to clarify, I am totally pumped to go on this trip with my wife to the Caribbean and the Christmas break was as amazing as it could be, family, friends, all the good stuff. All I am saying is the time away from the Kwoon leaves a hole in me that proves how much I love going to the classes and learning Kung Fu. What I am noticing is an imbalance at the moment, where the interaction with others at the Kwoon should be, it isn't. 

   So I practice at home, I have a mirror for visual reflection, I have a mind (insert comment..) for mental reflection, but the feedback that I crave the most is absent. I know there are one-on-ones available, but I don't utilize them, that is on me. I am an in person kind of guy, not a zoom/facetime/whatever kind of guy. Having a meeting via Zoom is as awesome as it is necessary, trying to explain and show a "blockage" with something is tough. I struggled a lot with this during Covid only having classes on Zoom. I understood and whole heartedly supported the need for it but I struggled nonetheless. Hard for this old dog to change his ways I guess, I'm just a relic cemented in the past. 

   So know that I am thinking of you guys and gals while we are away, looking forward to seeing yall in person come the 19th.

Push Ups  15300

Sit Ups  14750

Sparring  800 min

1609KM  1812.88 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  510

Weapon Form  495

Mastery recited 55