Ordinariness

I think I finally realize what the purpose of the 2nd degree class is. It is a class for us to work on specific concepts. When I say specific, I mean specific to us individually.

The normal classes are required to continue to work on the broad range of our knowledge base and skill base. The Tuesday class is our chance to narrow it down and really get a feel for what we need to be successful during our final test for black belt.

We need to make this class OUR class. It is not just another class, another hoop to jump. It is a tool, one that I know I have not utilized to its full potential.

Tonight, we were asked to think about what we are least confident with. I knew right away, but have been trying to figure it out as quietly as I could. I did not want people thinking I was not ready for the grading. This hindered my progress.

"A master, rather than condemning himself for his "ordinariness", will embrace his ordinariness and use it as a foundation for building the extraordinary." This sentence in "Mastery" has been stuck in my head a lot lately and is quite relevant to this topic.

Openly facing my lack of confidence in "one steps" allowed me to essentially determine what we covered in class and I got much out of this class because of it.

For instance, the main rational I took from it was no matter what technique or defense you execute, as long as you keep your intent pure to your spirit and the situation, you will find success, one way or another. Think about what is in front of you, not a step by step algorithm that has been pre-determined.

Having a set of pre-determined techniques does have its benefits, it does give us an equal base to work from and build upon. I just need to relax and let my own creativity draw from them, rather than simply get married to them and miss out.