Last But Not Least....

   Four hundred and six. That is how many blogs I have posted while being a part of the IHC. four hundred and seven if you include this one. I'm pretty proud of that, As far as I can tell, I never missed a week. This is one of the few requirements of the IHC that I can say I actually fulfilled. So this is a bitter sweet blog. After this one last blog I am no longer required to keep an online presence. Not sure how I feel about that because I really do enjoy blogging, if not for the IHC but for myself. Only time will tell I guess,,,

   A few last little tidbits...

   First off, happy Valentines day to all of you (a day late but oh well).

   Second, yesterday was twenty six years at my job. Feb 14,2000 I started at Competition Chev and twenty six years later I am still there. So many memories, so many people I have met and worked with, it is truly a good place to work. Thank you Mr Blair Polack for putting up with me all these years.

   And lastly, to all of you in the Chinese new year banquet demo next weekend, my primary hope is that you savor it. Take in every sight, sound, smell, laugh, cry, temporary madness, tranquil moment, all of it. I have had some life altering moments while being a part of these demos, they have changed parts of me forever (for the good!). I am now living vicariously through you all. I am now a spectator in your moment of glory. And I will enjoy your moment in the sun knowing how the excitement of being on display is one of the most thrilling things I have ever experienced. Shine my friends, shine like the stars you truly are. 

   So this is it, I am having a hard time closing this off because it feels like I am closing a very important chapter of my life. Once I post this, my path forward is unclear. One step at a time, that is where I will start.....

Chow....?

Push Ups  16900

Sit Ups  16750

Sparring  800 min

1609KM  1896 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  539

Weapon Form  525

Mastery recited 55

Numbers Update

 

Push Ups  16900

Sit Ups  16750

Sparring  800 min

1609KM  1896 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  539

Weapon Form  525

Mastery recited 55

Another or the Same?

   So this is my final month in the IHC. Seven years, that is how long I have been in the IHC. Being allowed to participate in this program has been a privilege, it has definitely changed my approach to Kung Fu. From being only involved in my two classes a week (adult 1 then 2) to absolute immersion in the school, the change in me has been profound because of the IHC. 

   Demos, potato bakes, mandatory/optional classes, accountability to my pledge to the team, being responsible for the banquet "process", the Tiger challenge, all of it. The IHC has become interwoven in my Kung Fu, but alas, my path will now be different. Or will it?

   Yes my accountability to the school has changed structured program wise, but I must endeavor to maintain that level of engagement to myself. Now is not the time to fade off into the sunset but rather to forge ahead and take charge of my own training and engagement. I will still blog, privately now of course. I will still follow the "no quitting" mantra because that has served me well. I will still have my hand up for every event the school has as well as come up with a few of my own. I will work on my forms, I will attend every class I can, both mine and others. I will learn and apply with intent. Scaling back on my Kung Fu is not really an option, it would feel like quitting to me. 

   So I will forge ahead, finding a new way to push myself instead of stagnating. Every class I attend will and must bring something new and shiny or I will admit to myself that I am just not looking hard enough. 

   So it has been an honor to be involved in this program, thank you for everything that every single person I have been involved has taught me. I will miss the program and all of you deeply but remember all the beautiful experiences fondly.

See ya on the mats amigos....

Push Ups  16500

Sit Ups  16350

Sparring  800 min

1609KM  1896 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  530

Weapon Form  525

Mastery recited 55

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

Cold

   I used to not be bothered by the cold but this latest cold streak has proven to me that that time has passed. Stiff knees, creaky hips, popping shoulders, I sound like an old house when I move. I was trying to do some forms work yesterday and for the life of me I could not get my internal temp above artic zombie (that's really cold). I watched myself in the mirror and I looked animated, poorly animated that is, think poorly drawn stick figure or Claymation (with frozen clay). No flow, no energy, no loosey goosey, just blah. So before I ended up injuring myself, I stopped. My mind said to me "there is always later when you get warm".  But is there? Life can wave it's hand at you at any point and say "meet my friend, Death". Yikes, this took a morbid turn, sorry about that, but being 55 and counting you (I) start to think about things like this.

   So where I am going with this is.... enjoy it while ya got it cause tomorrow it could all be gone. Cold or no cold, be glad Don that you are still alive and "suffering" through this. Things could be so much worse. 

Push Ups  14700

Sit Ups  14050

Sparring  800 min

1609KM  1784.74 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  490

Weapon Form  475

Mastery recited 50

Mental Salad

  This is one of those blogs that could go many different directions. So much has happened this week that I could blog about but that would be excessive. Grading, banquet, kids classes, time off, breathing, Chi cultivation, both family and Kung Fu traditions, camaraderie, outside looking in, demo preparation, achievements and disappointments, injuries and healing, the list goes on and on. There is no way I could ever claim I have nothing to blog about. 

   To pick one topic and compose a coherent blog, would be an afront to the other topics. But I do it anyways. I just need a moment to pick from the list.....and the winner is outside looking in... winner winner chicken dinner.

   Be blunt Don. I feel like an outsider 99.99% of the time. And that .01% is fleeting if nothing else. The IHC helped with that. Being allowed to be part of the kid's classes has helped with that. But to get more of what I desire I must give more. Give more time, give more effort, give more compassion, give more room in my soul for others, just give. And that I do not know how to do.

  I am sarcastic, judgmental, a pro at procrastination, a wizard at self loathing, and fearful of myself. I could blame society for making me this way but that is a bag of steaming crap. I make choices that are self-deprecating, I am openly hostile and vindictive at times, so on so on.... And I lose sleep over these black clouds that circle inside me.

    These are all part of me that I constantly working on to eradicate from "ME", perpetually trying to snuff these feeling and character flaws out. Yes they are dark and brooding, but they make the opposing light so so so much sweeter. So I struggle with me. Why? I do because I know how good it feels to succeed, how good it feels to be loved, how good it feels to give a bit of me every chance that presents itself. And Silent River is a huge part of this. 

   So to all of those who read this blog, thank you. To those who don't, I miss you. 

And on the flip side...

Merry Christmas and a happy new year to all. 

Push Ups  13200

Sit Ups  12650

Sparring  800 min

1609KM  1707.74 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  430

Weapon Form  445

Mastery recited 50

Kicks, Kicks and More Kicks

    Focusing on my kicks in Tuesday nights black belts class showed many disparities. One was left versus right abilities (height, power, speed). It has brought to the front of my mind the fact that if I am doing a kick I will automatically use my left leg as that is the one I am most comfortable using. And for that I am now paying the price. My left hip is very unhappy with me. 

   I wanted the power, the speed, the coordination that comes with using my left leg while we were doing these kicks, I felt I was making good progress. But part of me wanted to see what the right leg could (couldn't) do. The right leg was slower, lower and off target. I wasn't surprised, I rarely use this leg for kicks, and it showed. Defiantly no six harmonies there, maybe two if I was lucky. 

   Part of me screams "then ignore your left leg and only focus on your right". But there must be balance or I risk more bias of a side. So I will start with the right, work out a few kinks, then the left gets to play. I want to see if I can find a balanced between the two so technique approaches a balance. 

   I most likely will always favor my left, I am a lefty by the way, but the right needs to start to assert some authority here cause I am leaving it behind. 

Push Ups  13200

Sit Ups  12650

Sparring  800 min

1609KM  1707.74 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  430

Weapon Form  445

Mastery recited 50

Shifting

   So now it is December. Why does this matter to me? Easy answer, in my job world, Sept, Oct and Nov are chaos, I work in the automotive industry and the beginning of  "Tire Season" (insert maniacal laugh here) starts in mid Sept and the weather dictates how busy I will be till the initial rush is over which is usually about now (early Dec). These three(ish) months account for over 60% of our annual business so to say it is an important time would be understating the obvious. This rush can be one of two things, chaos and freaking chaos. Almost every single person is in a panic and it is my/our (our = my staff and I ) job to de-panic them. Plus the end of Nov is my yearly inventory which accounts for a very large amount of my yearly wage so I need to pour everything I have into it. This period of time can and usually is mentally and physically all consuming for me. I liken it to juggling snow flakes in a wind storm. So now it is December, ahhhhh, I can breathe. The snow flakes are no longer ominous but pretty again. 

  Being that it is now December, I am able to shift to a different mindset. It is almost relaxing for me. Christmas parties, family get togethers, just the season in general, love it. It may seem busy but it is a Gooood busy. 

   I can now refocus on my Kung Fu as well, no blurred mind from work, no physical exhaustion from truckloads of tires and batteries and body panels and rims and..... I can already feel myself being recharged and I looking forward to channeling that renewed energy towards my forms. It is a breath of fresh clean air. From over stimulation to chosen stimulation. And as grading day and the banquet both approach very quickly, I now have the time and mental energy to devote much more time to both. I am really looking forward to the next few months to see what I can accomplish.

Push Ups  12900

Sit Ups  12350

Sparring  750 min

1609KM  1707.74 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  425

Weapon Form  430

Mastery recited 50

Future Leaders and Dreamers

    So Kid's Warrior Night has come and gone. It was monumental for me. Twenty eight students between the ages of five and twelve, five instructors and two extremely valuable helpers. Controlled chaos at times but worth every second. I have dozens of stories I could relate but really you just had to be there to experience the joy of it. 

   A couple of things really stuck with me though. Like my blogs title, Future Leaders and Dreamers, seeing the personality of some of these students really hit home with me. Artists (Todai Cynthia Bourque), happy observers (Todai Caleb Stewart), absolute limitless energy (Todai Kaine Street-Ramsey), pure quiet leadership (Todai Freya Paszek), willingness to help beyond his years (Todai Nathan Sloove), focus beyond belief (Todai Nathan Ferris), these are but a few examples of the marvelous students we have in our school. If that night would have been three times longer I still would not have grown tired of the priceless interaction I was receiving with the future leaders of our world. 

   I will cherish the opportunity of being allowed to be part of this event and I am looking forward to the next opportunity to be involved in any event like this. 

 A very very large shout out to my fellow participants;

Todai Hadley and Mikayla Smith-Jansen

Sehing Shira Csillag, Sehing Simon Kohut, Sehing Kayley Burke

and our ring master....

Todai Malinda Ferris

You all make this school a great place to be.

Push Ups  12870

Sit Ups  12308

Sparring  700 min

1609KM  1707.74 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  425

Weapon Form  430

Mastery recited 40

Only One Option - Success

Kung Fu Warrior Night! Nov 28,2025

   Fingers crossed, toes crossed, eyes crossed. I am excited for this. I am hoping this is epic. One for the ages. Repeatable.

   Seeing the disconnect from reality that most people live in these days (social media, gaming, etc), this is an amazing opportunity to engage the younger students with the school and Kung Fu. A night of games and challenges, Kung Fu infused but with a little twist here and there to fully (hopefully) engage the student in a night to remember of fun and new friends. 

   I am both excited and nervous about the night. If thing go right, BOOM, total success with smiles all around and eagerness to be more engaged in our school. If things go meh, a huge opportunity lost to inspire the next generation of martial artists. I feel the pressure of this, I understand the importance of this. Success is the only option, 100% success is my goal. 

Push Ups  12850

Sit Ups  12268

Sparring  700 min

1609KM  1670.08 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  410

Weapon Form  415

Mastery recited 40

So Many Forms

   I took some time Saturday to run through all the forms I know. No easy task if you are taking your time. So an hour(ish) later I reflected and how much fun yet utterly exhausting that was. And I also realized how many of these forms were in maintenance mode. Slowing it down to "feel" each form caused many many questions. These are questions I get when I think I know something versus actually being able to do them. Each form had it's own challenges and questions, some were an entire sequence that no longer felt right. It was an eye opener. 

   Then there are the forms I should know but have devoted zero time to. Why is that? There are two gigantic gaps in my forms knowledge that for some reason I have ignored. Again, why is that? Questions I need to answer honestly. 

   I'll be the first to admit that I do not devote as much time as I should to working/learning my forms. There always seems to be something else that takes a priority over this. I could list them but that is just a list of excuses.  

Push Ups  12850

Sit Ups  12268

Sparring  700 min

1609KM  1634.39 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  400

Weapon Form  400

Mastery recited 40

Together

   Alone with my thoughts yesterday I found myself reflecting on how I train and how those around me affect it. Pushing myself to my limits when it is just me pushing is full, and I mean totally full, of excuses. I hold back, I cheat, I excuse my excuses. On the flip side of that, when I am amongst my fellow Kung Fu brethren, I approach it much differently. Then there is when I am instructing, different approach then as well. 

   These different levels of engagement have never bothered me before, but they do now. The subject has been brought up many many times before, both in structured classes and in the IHC. Training in a silo, accountability, eye for detail, practicing with intent, one on ones, reaching out for help, being more resilient, it has been there all along. 

   None of this should be new to me, I hear what is being said but am I listening to and understanding what is being said? I will admit that no I have not been. My ego is and has been in the drivers seat for a very long time, I am but a passenger. When I train alone, it is good enough, but for who?  For me, for you, for anyone? When I train in a group, same question should arise right?

   With the evolution of the IHC I need to understand my training better. When am I training for mastery and when am I training for myself? Should they not be the same?? 

   I cannot exist as a martial artist by myself, this I know. I need the comradery that it brings, the togetherness. Even the concept of together separately applies here, not just for the flow of my Kung Fu but the very existence of my Kung Fu. I cannot do this alone. Only the presence of my fellow travelers in this everlasting martial arts journey can sustain me and feed my quest for being better than I was yesterday.

   Anyways, this is what happens when I have a Saturday alone with just my thoughts rambling around in my melon. I feel that theses are all valid questions that I need to answer, so I will endeavor to by using the resources so generously offered to me by Silent River. 

Push Ups  12850 , 

Sit Ups  12268

Sparring  700 min

1609KM  1595.98 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  400

Weapon Form  400

Mastery recited 35

Hard to Do, For Some (Me)

   Thursday''s Kids classes. Halloween game night. I was tasked with running one of the games. I have seen this game run by others many many times, I understand how the "rules" work. Well it was my turn to run the game this last Thursday. I realized very quickly that what I knew about the game and what I could openly orate to the students for instructions were two very different things. My mental road block went up immediately . I stammered, I hesitated, I was unclear, I failed. I was dying for someone else to come over and save me from this disaster. 

   Thankfully Todai Ferris just let it play out. As soon as I realized I was on my own (so to speak), I did what I could to salvage the game. I turned on the Goof. I started to have fun with them instead of being a spectator. While it was not an ideal outcome, it was what I had to give at that moment. There were still bumps on the road but it started to turn the corner from a disaster to mostly fun for the students. 

   I still feel it was a sub-par outing by me but it was also a great learning moment for me. What looks seamless and easy for another is because they are good at it and have obviously honed their skill to achieve this level of proficiency. Countless repetitions by them has made them both competent and confidant at this skill. I am not envious but in awe of the skill. 

Funny how teaching can be so unbelievably rewarding, if you let it be.

Push Ups  12250 , 

Sit Ups  11623

Sparring  700 min

1609KM  1561.09 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  385

Weapon Form  375

Mastery recited 35

Direction From?

   The push/pull of a punch. This opened a whole can of worms for me. Doing thrust punches from a horse stance has felt like a pull for quite a while, but I am stationary. The power still travels from the earth up into my hips then is pulled towards it's objective. There is rotation, there is vector, there is intent, there is release. It feels natural both in body and mind. But then the twist came.....

   Now do it from a slide stepping bow stance. Suddenly I feel I am pushing my power up to it's final destination. So why does this change in stance(s) change anything? I am still using the earth as a base, I am still engaging (hopefully) my six harmonies, my vector hasn't changed, my target has but I am moving towards/away from it. Is it my shoulders, is it lumbar positioning, are my eyes down, has my center risen to my chest, are my hips just doing footwork not transitional power, do I not understand the concept of push versus pull, is my ego refusing to being open to change? So many questions. 

   Dissection. This is how I am describing my approach to this new paradox. I am starting with my shoulders, this is where I feel the problem lays. Am I too tense, too loose, too forward etc. If it turns out that it is, fix it and repeat until it feels as natural as the aforementioned horse stance. If not keep looking until I figure it out. I feel the fix may transition it's way though the rest of my Kung Fu like wild fire, cool.

Push Ups  12235 

Sit Ups  11623

Sparring  650 min

1609KM  1527.09 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  385

Weapon Form  375

Mastery recited 35

Little Tweak Big Pain

   Most of my pains and aches are old friends, some of them have been with me for a while, but a new one came to visit this last week. 

   While doing some kicks the top mid frontish of my left hip "popped". It hurt right away, kinda like smashing a hammer on your thumb. This was a new one, the pain was very deep, even standing correctly made it throb. Throughout the week it has migrated from my hip to my lower back, guess it is taking a tour of the neighborhood to see if it wants to move in. I have been doing my best to gently persuade it to move on, gentle stretching, heat/cold, massaging it, Tylenol, the standard stuff, and I think it is finally taking the hint and packing up and leaving. So after 4 days of gingerly moving to and fro I am hopefully bidding my newest pain an unfond farewell. 

   Seriously though, this really highlighted a flexibility issue that has been creeping up on me, especially my hips. During Covid there was a hip stretching course I took and it did help with opening up my hips. As is usual for me, once the course was over I moved on, never following through with the benefits that it brought. Time to dig it up from my old laptop and reengage with my body. 

Push Ups  12235 

Sit Ups  11623

Sparring  650 min

1609KM  1496.85 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  385

Weapon Form  375

Mastery recited 35

Super Fun

   Thursday's IHC. Board (shield) breaking. 

   First we did groups of five. Quick set up, no adjusting of distances allowed, four boards, go. First three boards were in range and felt solid, fourth board was set way to far back, needed a cross step to complete. That unexpected cross step was both a surprise and entertaining (for me). While it wasn't the break I wanted, it mostly felt good. It did highlight how adrenalin effects distancing. 

   In that fraction of a second as I targeted my board while doing a spinning back kick I thought I realized both my error in set up and what needed to happen so I didn't miss the target. Adrenalin said it was 1000 feet away and I needed a BIG cross step, my mind disagreed but it was too late, adrenalin won that battle. So my kick was a few things, not fully in my target area (to the outside and high), not within my intended power range (compressed and short), and just plain old crappy. While I did hit my target, I did not destroy my target, I just tickled it a little. That showed me that adrenalin can be both a friend and foe at the same time. So I need more adrenalin situations to learn to better cope with the "dump" I thought.....

   Well low and behold phase two of the night. The boards are set up for us behind our backs with no hint or idea as to where they are. Just turn and react. Fun on a bun. First pass was just two shields, it happened so fast I don't even remember the combo but I do remember striking both with what felt like satisfaction. damn adrenalin strikes again. I don't even remember the second round, my mind was racing to think of better combinations but then the third round came, oh boy. 

   Four shields held by two people. First off, a great big bow to both Sifu Rybak and Sihing Csillag for their creativity in board placement, it was a total surprise to me when I turned around to see four boards randomly dangling in front of me. In my minds eye I was Joe Lewis, in reality I was Jerry Lewis.

One of the boards was two feet above my head staring down at me with amusement, I could hear it mocking me, taunting me "whatcha gonna do punk?". Only thing that came to mind was an upward knife hand...... what the heck is a upward knife hand? It was kinda a disco move/stance but instead of pointing up my hand in the air with a number one finger raise high it was a knife hand. Interesting choice brain. 

So adrenalin wins again and apparently it has no sense of modesty or style. 

   So I need to work on controlling my adrenalin is the theme of this blog, not my dance moves. 

Push Ups  11795 

Sit Ups  11183

Sparring  600 min

1609KM  1449.97 km

Acts of Kindness  1400 recorded

Hand Form  380

Weapon Form  375

Mastery recited 35

Just numbers from the previous week.

Push Ups  11795 

Sit Ups  11183

Sparring  580 min

1609KM  1414.90 km

Acts of Kindness  1325 recorded

Hand Form  380

Weapon Form  375

Mastery recited 35

Mixed Bag of Goodness

   Lets start with parent/guardian participation week. OMG! This was so much fun. Seeing the dynamics between students and parents was amazing. You could see and feel the student not just kick it up one notch but kicking it up ten notches! The din, the engagement, the sweat, the smiles, it was more than I could have ever hoped for or even expected. The surprised look on the parent faces when their child put them in an arm bar, priceless. Watching the students fervently trying to teach their parent what they know made me grin from ear to ear till my face hurt and my voice raw from both laughter and shouting encouragement/instructions. So a massive shout out to those who organized this, I am sure there was plenty of stories around the dinner table by both students and parents after this marvelous event. 

   Next, Deb and I received a little surprise at the tailgate party yesterday. One of my co-workers has three very sweet younger children. Every game they come over to our spot and enjoy a pop/water and whatever happens to be on the menu (especially the cookies). Yesterday they gave me/us something I will not soon forget. It caught me by total surprise, I could feel the tears of gratitude welling up inside me. Receiving this type of gratitude so unexpectedly warmed me to my core. The sun felt warmer, the sky looked brighter (through my tears), I was almost overwhelmed. My god I needed this!! I can only hope to someday give someone else this kind of kindness, the world needs so much more of this. 

Push Ups  11795 

Sit Ups  11183

Sparring  580 min

1609KM  1370.69 km

Acts of Kindness  1325 recorded

Hand Form  380

Weapon Form  375

Mastery recited 35