Patience

I have patience for those around me, but I noticed I have little patience for myself. I am very hard on myself in many aspects in my life. This manifests in my attitude toward my kung fu. I look at those around me and see great martial artists, people who have spent years, decades mastering this incredible art. Do I benefit from being in their presence? You bet I do! So just what is my problem?

The problem is I don't see it this way all the time. I sometimes lose perspective and compare myself to them. I help teach the kids class with black belts, I have lived with multiple black belts, I am friends with black belts, I am married to a black belt! I am surrounded by all of this greatness and feel a little inadequate at times. I understand that this is a dangerous mindset to slip into and I am working on getting out of it.

A moment of clarity struck me today though that reinforced how I should view this. We were at my parents acreage, cross country skiing. While teaching Mel the basic concepts my dad made a remark to Mel, something like, "Don't worry, he has been doing this since he was quite young."

It dawned on me that everyone has their own journey, their own path. I have only been practicing kung fu for a few years. I have come a long way from where I started and I need to recognize that more often. My journey has not been a long one, have patience, don't look to the horizon so much and fully experience where I am now, what I am doing NOW.

"Develop compassion for yourself so that you  can be in the presence of a master and grow from the experience.  Rather than comparing yourself to (and resenting) people who have  mastery, remain open and receptive."     - Stuart Emery

Concert

I have lately been getting more interested in listening to classical music. I find when driving during the day for work, I sometimes feel the need to hear just the sound of instruments playing in the background. It is almost a trigger to help me reset and focus on my next task. I heard that if you want to calm a cat down in your vehicle, you put a towel over their carrier and play some classical music. We tried out this theory with our cat and found that it works. So if it works to calm down an animal that is clearly distressed and has no idea what is going on, it should be able to keep me calm as well. (Not the towel over the eyes part obviously, that would not be safe for driving.)

Mel and I have also recently been going to several classical concerts. It is very interesting to hear the music coming right from the instruments, you can see each musician move and play in their own way to contribute to what you are listening to. After 3 years in the I Ho Chuan, especially this time of year, I can really appreciate how many hours of practice it must take for them to play at such a substantially high level. I can relate to the satisfaction in a successful performance and the drive to make the next one even more successful.

Pain with a Smile

This weekend was the first of six boot camp seminar classes. I am very excited for this particular seminar simply because it used to be part of my regular saturday routine. I didn't realize just how much I missed it until my first lap around the kwoon to warm up. Sifu Masterson has a unique approach, combining fitness with kung fu concepts to give you a great workout while keeping you mentally engaged in your kung fu, at least that is what I get from it.

It is a class meant to recognize and push your physical limits. Each person has their own limit it is really fun to see how far you can improve each session. You are ultimately in control of how difficult the class is, the harder you try the more difficult it is. However, if there is no pain felt you are most likely not improving yourself. Don't get me wrong, this is not injury pain, this is sweat generated, muscle building pain, the kind you are happy to smile about.

Take care everyone.

Woodworking

Today I built a bed frame for Mel and I. We decided to go this route because we thought it would be a fun project. I haven't done any woodworking since high school so I was excited to give it a try, with the help of my father in law. He has a wealth of knowledge in this subject, not to mention the tools to accomplish the task, I am certainly grateful for this.

The feeling of accomplishment from building something with your own two hands greatly exceeds merely paying money to buy one someone else made. Sure it is quicker and easier, just swipe the credit card and you have it, no fuss no muss. However, this bed is unique, the only of it's kind in the world. Even if you build another one with the exact same materials, the exact same measurements and tools, it will not be the same. Not to mention the skills and knowledge that is learnt by building it yourself. I am looking into a future of building more furniture and perhaps even selling it eventually.

This reminded me of the importance of not just attempting to buy your way through life. You need to get engaged, get really into what is going on in your life and make it what you want. For example, you can't expect to sign up for Kung Fu and expect to get your black belt simply by throwing money at it and not making an effort. How much money and time you spend on something is not the deciding factor of success, what you do with what you spend is key.

Take care everyone.