Year of the Pig

We are 5 days into the year of the pig and there has already been some ups and downs.  The morning workouts are a great start to getting numbers in.  The first 2.5 days were strong and then when Simon got sick it threw a wrench into it.  I did not get my numbers in for the other 2.5 days and that was very frustrating but then the banquet happened in there and we all made it through that.  Woohoo!  Time to dig in and go harder!


Speaking of the banquet, watching the black belt candidates was really amazing this year.  This is the first year that I was so involved with their journey and everything that they did was very motivating.  As I stood watching them receive their black belts, I was so very proud of each and everyone of them, especially Simon.  It flashed me back to the first banquet we ever attended.  We were in the small hall and in the back so we didn't really get to see everything but even then there was a feeling in the air that you knew something big was happening.  Every year it got bigger and bigger as you started personally knowing the candidates and watching their journey.  Sitting back there on Saturday, I could also see the day when it will be my turn.  It is not a "if" but a "when".


Being part of the I Ho Chuan demo was awesome but the really amazing part was the Lion Dance.  It was a new experience and I can't wait to do this again.  We learnt so much but there is so much more to learn.  Working with Mr. Bjorkquist was a great experience and I am so thankful for all the help that he gave me.


Another amazing banquet moment was receiving the Travis Panasiuk award.  That was a great honour and I am very thankful for being chosen.  It is a little scary to be placed with such amazing previous candidates.  What I have learnt is don't be afraid to put your hand up, leading does not mean doing by yourself, and there is a great team ready to help each other.  We have such great leaders in our midst, don't be afraid to learn from them.


For everyone that was at the banquet, how many times did someone come up to you and thank you for something you have done?  I know we normally brush those compliments off but I want you to really think about what was said.  These are the moments that you have touched someone's life and you probably didn't even realize it.  This shows how much we can do for someone else without a lot of effort.  Imagine the difference that can be made if we made extra effort.  Remember this as we start recording our Acts of Kindness.


A HUGE thank you to everyone that set up and took down the banquet.  It felt very weird not being in the midst of all the action but it was amazing to see how well it was done.  You all did GREAT!  My family was very impressed with the banquet and many want to come back and watch it again.  It always amazes me to the level of commitment and support that this team and school can do when it pulls together.  Go Pigs!


See you on the mats!

Is it really a mountain?

This weekend was nothing as we expected.  We had a few bumps along the way.  These bumps are feeling like mountains to my kids.  It makes me wonder how do you help them prepare.  I have always tried to help them do critical thinking.  What is the problem, what are options to help solve it, what are other options now that you started thinking about solutions, what are the pros and cons and finally, what is your action.  So why do they see a mountain and freeze?  Is it experience and maturity?  Does life give you more items to compare so you know the difference between a mountain and a hill?

When I compare this to my training, I can see a role reversal from the above.  My kids will say “just do it” but sometimes I see a mountain ahead and instead of trying to figure a path around or over it, I am stuck staring up in awe.  As I write this I realize that experience is the most important thing.  It makes me understand why Sifu Brinker says “don’t talk, just do”.  That it is a mountain to you until you see something bigger.  It’s building that toolset which will help you attack that mountain in front of you.

I think that is the one benefit of being an older student, you know the mountain is ahead so you prepare today to be able to tackle it tomorrow.

See you on the mats!

Preparing for the Pig

I look at the year of the dog and it’s been so amazing even through the ups and downs.  So how does this allow me to prepare for the Year of the Pig?  I know that this year will be even more challenging as I need to work harder and cannot coast on previous accomplishments.  I went over my numbers and they were not where they should be so there is an easy area for improvement. The only things that I completed was distance and was on track for blogging catching up in sparring and AOKs but this does not mean I quit.  I need to work harder to finish this year stronger and have a consistent approach for next year which is only a few days away.  I need to blog those numbers!  I really am looking forward to seeing what this year brings!

Engaged or Complacent?

Lately I have had my patience challenged severely.  I admit there are times that it would be easier to be complacent and stop being engaged.  Every day, and sometimes every minute I have to ask myself if I am doing what is right and being patient OR have I just accepted mediocrity and ignored what is happening around me.

This can also occur in our training because every day it is a fight to make sure I am engaged and giving my best.  It easy to just go through the motions instead of really looking at what you are doing and why.  I thought it would get easier as I advanced in the ranks but that has proven just the opposite.  It is easy to fall back on the things we know and have done.

To me, this is mastery.  It’s not  “picking your battles” but mindfully trying to do your best. Accepting when you have slipped and trying to understand what caused it.  Its knowing that you will be challenged and you will not always succeed but you learn more from those times if you let yourself.  It's being able to become more proactive than reactive, and "let the experience be like the planting of seed within you - with nourishment, it will grow into your own individual mastery".

See you on the mats!

A Year in Review

This year was challenging and rewarding.  I have spent quality time with my children while we participated in many of the seminars.  I was able to be chauffeured to I Ho Chuan while the boys were in the front, singing and talking.  The boys were always encouraging while I was putting together my form.  “Have you tried this?” or “What are you trying to do with that move?” I was lucky to watch both boys grow and change over the year.  I have gained consistency in my training (the morning workouts just add to that).  I have overcome mental blocks and have become more self aware of my attitude and my actions.  I completed a 10K run and want to do another.  I took the kids up a mountain in awful weather and we have stories to tell about it.  I learnt sanshou, yoga, tai chi, meditation, lion dancing, and so much more.  I have had awesome mentors and instructors as well as great training partners.  I was able to train and learn from exceptional grading candidates.  I have made new friends and strengthened existing relationships.

As for challenges, I continue to rebuild my shoulder.  I may have continued to do my requirements but at times I didn’t record them so they didn’t count.  I had a set back from a sparring injury that has finally recovered.  Our family was all affected when Simon was dealing with his anxiety attacks and he continues to learn how to cope with these.  

The best part of this year though was my ability to look back at my year through my journaling.  I had forgotten so much of the ups and downs.  At the beginning of the year I was a blue belt that wasn’t sure what I wanted to do.  I am now a brown belt who is excited for the time when I get to grade for my black belt.  Who knew a year could make so much of a change.  My ask of you is to go back and read all your blogs again.  May you find some hidden surprises like I did.

See you on the mats (and in year of the pig)!

Intent

Last week we were asked to focus on intent while doing our Kung Fu. I needed to work on this area more than what I was expecting once I started to be mindful of it.

At work I have been concentrating on "where am I and what am I doing" but the last few days I have added "what is my intent for this 15 minutes?" and this has been improving my focus.  I use the "where am I and what am I doing" as a tool to catch myself when distracted and bring my attention back but by adding the "what is my intent for this 15 minutes?" it gives me direction and purpose.  If I use more than 15 minutes, it is too easy to let something else become the priority.  Any less time and I cannot complete a task.

Let’s talk about distractions..... I do not multitask well.  I am easily distracted so I need to focus on one thing and do it well and then move onto the next.  I am an auditory learner.  So this means when my thoughts are racing around in my head, I will try to talk them out to get them organized and bring them into some kind of logical plan.  So it should come as no surprise that my team has given me squirrel posters, they know how to distract me when I start bugging them about vacation hours, and they have bets on how long I can keep our team meetings on track.  Now that being said, I have an awesome team that works well together and really does support each other.

Using Kung Fu techniques at work has helped me tremendously this last year and I know that I will be pulling on these more as the year proceeds.  We always talk about how we can bring Kung Fu into our everyday lives but I want to talk about how we can bring our everyday things into Kung Fu.  I know that I am easily distracted so during class I have been trying very hard to make sure my attention is dedicated to my Sifu and my lesson.  I am trying to be aware of events or actions that may trigger a response (mental, emotional, etc) and ask myself "why is this happening, does this happen outside of the kwoon, and what can I do to change it".  We all have things that we bring into the kwoon but it is how we deal with these that makes the difference.  I am using opportunities in the kwoon to improve self-awareness and work on things I need to change and this becomes easier when I think of intent.

The Mental Game

This holiday season has me reflecting back on my Kung Fu journey.  Where I am, where I came from, and where I want to be. The biggest challenge I see for me on this journey has been and will be the mental one.  I know that I am a very competitive person who wants to do her best and does not like to do things poorly.  I do not like to be unprepared.  I remember once when I did a forms session to learn Kempo II and during the demo portion I forgot ALL OF IT.  I blanked out, turned red and just bowed to finish.  Although I did not get any negative feedback from the Sifu's, I did not watch the demo video afterwards and would rather forget about the experience then learn from it.  I started to feel these same feelings while watching the last lion dance practice.  I was very disappointed in my performance and initially I wanted to ignore it and "just try harder next time" but I know that will not solve anything so I am reviewing the video over and over, looking for the things that I did not like and understand why I don't like them.  I am looking at it with an analytical eye instead of a judgemental one.

"You must be able to correct yourself without invalidating or condemning yourself, to accept results and improve upon them." This is a very hard concept when I have high expectations of myself but I am learning to accept my results and work to improve them.  This is really the only way to continue to grow.   

See you on the mats!