Organic Teaching.

It has been quite a journey getting from 'there' to 'here.' The missteps, the falls, the bumps, the bruises, but like a stubborn boxer taking too many head shots, I get back up for more. 

Quitting has never been an option, following the easy path has never really been my thing. I am not naturally talented, I am not gifted, I can only refine the basics, in Karate and in life. At the end of the day I will never be as good as some, but I will be better than I was the day, or the moment before. 

My enemy is not some assailant in the street or some opponent in the ring, it is mediocrity, it is settling for less, it is in stagnation, it is in not improving who I am. 

When I look at my Children I see reflections of myself, different aspects of myself, but I also see sparks of unique individuals that seek guidance, though they do not know how to really express that and they might think quite the opposite.

It is hard to get through to them, it is hard to get through to anyone, until the trying ceases and the door is left open to emulate actions as they are carried out in the moment. Lessons will be picked up, but I am not really the Teacher, the Teacher is the action itself, in the moment. 

What they take away from it may not be what was intended, which is why it is always best to leave this open and not intend a lesson on that level, but intend, only, to offer something good to emulate. 

Building something, working with metal, practicing survival skills, Karate, cleaning a gun, teaching gun safety, showing a respect for bladed weapons via wooden replicas, this is all good practice. Whatever they take away from it will be worth it in the end, but THEY have to take that first step through the door, you cannot force it upon them or this will drive them away. 

Whatever the case may be, if that door is open and they even take half a step through, that is better than nothing and they will carry that on because it was valuable to them, it helped them learn something about themselves. 

My Sensei once asked me a question he wanted relayed to his former Student, Kris Wilder; I cannot remember the question just now, but Kris Wilder's answer hit home, it went deep, he responded with something like 'always having room for the allowance of the Student to quit.' 

This was very much in-line with my Sensei's approach, his job, in his words, was to 'make the Student go away, to make the Student want to quit.' 

The reason for this is that if the Student stuck around, if the Student kept knocking, that let him know the Student was serious about learning what he had to teach. 

If the Student was not serious, then neither the Student nor the Teacher wasted their time. 

That was all. 

Honor and Legacy.

 As a teenager I spent a lot of time at my Sensei's house, mostly doing yard work and learning how to cook. 

Many of the lessons were not even directly drawn from Karate, most were drawn from mundane things like weeding the garden, cooking stir fry, eggs, etc. 

There was quite a bit of Karate, but the main lesson was that all things can be Karate, Karate is found in being deliberate, mindful of what we are doing each and every moment, moving with patient intent. 

When my Sensei retired I was uncertain what to think, what to really do, but I kept going because it was already a part of me. 

One can speculate on why he felt the need to retire, to get rid of all things related to his Karate, and speculate I did, but that really serves no purpose and, at least to me, maybe that was a lesson as well. Just keep going, nothing is really permanent anyway. 

It does not matter why he retired, it does not matter if he still trains or not; what really matters is moving with deliberate and mindful intent, one foot in front of the other, one step at a time. 

Shihan Roseberry, my Sensei's Sensei, is gone, but his legacy remains in those that are still moving forward, still keeping to the path. 

Unwavering? Maybe. It is not likely, we all waver, that is how we learn balance. 

That is the most important thing. 

***

There is another 'group' of Karateka that seem to have forgotten what this is all about, maybe they never really knew to begin with, who is it say?

Shihan Roseberry even stayed in touch with his Teacher, Seikichi Toguchi, when he and the Shorei Kan went their separate ways. 

He also stayed in touch with his Dojo Brothers, one such being Yoshio Kuba, and had the opportunity to train with Masanobu Shinjo Sensei. 

The point being that it does not matter what patch you wear on your Karate Gi and it does not matter how you do Kata or what sort of Kihon you practice, we are all Karateka, we are all one family, we can all learn from one another. 

Differences are differences, certainly, but this should never come between us and, when on the floor, the training takes precedence over ALL disagreements. 

The back and forth Political BS has no place there. My Sensei would always say, 'It is not the Teacher who leaves the Student, it is the Student who leaves the Teacher.'

Perhaps some Teachers should learn that lesson, if they care about the legacy they leave behind then they should make sure their legacy is a good one, a legacy worthy of being passed down, carried on into the future. 

We have enough charlatans, we have enough bad apples. Let's try to keep planting good seeds that will one day grow into strong, healthy, vibrant trees with deep roots. 

New Year Focus - Making the Obstacle the Way.

Let’s try this… New Year New Me… Done to death and seldom works.

Not for lack of motivation in the beginning, but for lack of discipline to follow through.

My Sensei used to talk about having the focus and will to see something through to the end.

Seeing the cut of the sword through, the punch passed the target, the job finished.

It is a lot harder than it seems.

In life we encounter many different variables that seem, at first glance, to be aligned against us, to ensure we do not succeed in completing what we set out to do.

Our perspective seems to zero in on this ‘me versus whatever is in my way.’

We view these things as Obstacles… We set the stage for our own downfall.

We are the obstacle to our own betterment, to the very completion of each task.

We also lose sight of the target, the goal in the process and, subsequently we may even start to perform at a sub par level, never seeking to perform at higher levels of quality.

The Budoka might only see a black belt around their opponent’s waiste and, if they are a Brown Belt, they become fixated and end up fighting the Belt rather than the person.

A person might be tired after hours of working out, or just plain work, they become fixated on their exhausted state, they allow it to dominate them and, thus, fail to perform even at sub par levels, never mind attempting to remain consistent or shoot for a higher bar.

A parent might come home after a long day at work and flip on the TV hoping to relax and become frustrated when things do not go their way… They lash out to try to make the external world conform because of their fixation, they have allowed their mind and being to be dominated.

We have the power within us to turn things around.

We can choose how to respond, we can choose to dominate rather than be dominated in whatever we face… We can choose to be disciplined and see things through to the end.

Easier said than done, yes, but all things that have actual worth are difficult to attain, once attained we become more than we were before.

We just have to decide to step up rather than step aside.

To be present. To have faith and focus. To know what drives us and what we are shooting for.

Furthermore… We have to realize the end is not automatic, we actually have to take those steps, to walk that path, to be consistent.

Ryan Holiday wrote a book based on something Marcus Aurelius said… The Obstacle is the Way.

We have to make the Obstacle the Way, like lifting weights, adding more and more, yet becoming stronger because we flip the script and work it.

Every Day, new me… It has nothing to do with a specific date.

Karate - A Positive Note

While Karate may not be what it has been made out to be, this does not mean that it has not, or cannot, be utilized for something better.

I may not have all the answers, but a Student CAN use the framework to find the rest AND learn something not readily addressed on the Dojo Floor.

In this way the answers are always on the floor.

How the Karate student applies themselves, based on their discipline, spells the difference between success and failure.

Whether that be in Self Defense, Shop Class, or a Board Room Meeting, how they apply themselves is everything.

There is carry over in all aspects, despite what anyone says or writes.

Those who are successful in negotiation tend to be pretty aware outside that board room.

Those with training tend to gain confidence and rise as Leaders in their field, despite being the lowest on the proverbial totem pole.

I am a Leader in Security and head the Security Force on a Government Site, I started as an Officer with some pretty strange cases.

I am now sitting in on executive meetings, identifying areas of Security Concern, handling Client Concerns, working towards better Security Practices and identifying problem areas while handling finances for the account.

Anyone can do any of this with the right mindset, but more, with the right foundation.

Foundation is key, but to rise above and put it to work, that is the lock.

 ck.

Karate in Reality.

What does Kata Saifa tell you about collecting antibiotics from the source?

What does Kata Seiyunchin tell you about skinning animals or setting up a shelter?

These are not brought up as realistic examples, they are meant to be extreme examples of how Karate does not address everything.

Kids are impressionable and will often accept the answers they are given. Karate Sensei like to come off as all knowing and deserving of respect.

Karate Sensei do not know everything and, in my experience, even fail at the basics, like marriage.

They may have the answers to violence, or maybe not, they may have the answers to success in modern life, or maybe not, but if they claim to have the answers to everything, you need to put on your tin foil cap and listen with skepticism.

One Karate Teacher I knew was a womanizer and alcoholic, he had his leg amputated because he couldn’t get his act together, but his family benefited from his enterprise.

In the end, he lost his life, but his family endured… So one might say he was smart and selfless in that regard.

I see another Karate Organization ripping itself apart while it’s’ founder is alive.

That person named someone else as Chief Instructor, but when his own monetary value was decreased he decided to break away, he forbid anyone in his old Organization to use even his picture and formed a new Organization based in Okinawa, because that is where the money is, and with his name… Despite having cut his own Teacher out of his named Lineage.

Karate has always been a place of questionable character.

Toguchi was an alcoholic chain smoker, Higa was an alcoholic Chain Smoker, money is money and people make it where they see opportunity.

Karate was, once and still is, the study of Police,Thugs, and Gangsters. 

Not the art of character development. That is a marketing ploy of our modern era, based on movies.

Karate is also effective. Based on the fact that GSP, Bad Rutten, Machida, and even Connor McGregor utilizing it to gain fame, money, and titles.

Karate is not what it seems and is certainly not an art meant for children.

Reality Over Fantasy.

Our Karate, we are told, is battlefield tested, it is ancient.

Most don’t buy that crap even today. 

Karate is a twentieth Century invention and we are told it is based on a mix between Chinese Quan Fa and Okinawan Ti.

What does this even mean?

Karate, as our bias would have us believe, is central to trade and cultural exchange between the Okinawans and Chinese.

It would seem that more cultural exchange would be focused on actual trade and other things, like education.

Maybe not so much, but the Chinese felt it necessary to send their performance artists and low level dissidents than their actual Military heads.

Seems a practice that has continued to this day.

Jumping forward a bit… Why would an occupied country want to give up their secrets to those they view as an occupying foreign force?

They wouldn’t, if they were smart, and even today there is a movement in Okinawa that views both Japan AND America as occupying foreign forces.

Karate at its’ present stage, as it is presently taught, is exactly what it is meant to be, benign.

Although there are many MMA practitioners who count on Karate as their base, from Bas Rutten, GSP, Machida, and even Connor McGregor… They show Karate has effective roots, but they miss out on the entirety of the effectiveness of Karate.

I have never met Jan Dam in person and am hardly an expert on Ti, I left Jan’s group due to an Illness and the expensiveness of his seminar, but Jan introduced me to another side of the equation.

Thanks to modern technology I was able to learn from this man.

Ti is not Karate and Karate is NOT Ti. The flow of entry has a place and a study, it has nothing to do with technique or set Bunkai. It has nothing to do with X versus y answering with z.

No. That is not how boxing does it either, no getting hung up on techniques, forms, or how it SHOULD look because violence is never calculated, it is always messy.

This falls short as well.

Do you learn to use your window reflection? Are you trained to hear the extra sounds around you? Do you look for extra shadows, are you trained to hold your head on a swivel? 

There is even a smell. Do you know what it is?

How about the timeframe of violent interactions?

Two to three movements. Kata is a whole slew of movements. What about the variables? The struggle? Where will you flow to next?

Violence is the game. Prevention should be the name.

Most schools focus on when prevention fails, they do not address anything else. Head block? Failed self defense. Reverse punch? Failed self defense.

What do you do when your assailant doesn’t just stand still?

Also a failure.

Fairbairne is a good starting point. Forget styles and Organizations if they do not have your well being at heart.

Rank means nothing if you cannot defend yourself.

Identity

The more I discover the more I realize how little I truly know and, more than that, I don’t know what I don’t know.

The romanticization of the wise sage-like Karate Sensei, Kung Fu Sifu, or what have you, is a fantasy.

No one has all the answers and while the answers might be on the floor, what is the floor?

Can one learn Carpentry or the skills of an Electrician on the floor?

They can certainly learn the focus necessary to obtain such knowledge as well as strategic methods of approaching such studies, but no, the floor cannot teach you to be a Carpenter or Electrician.

Identifying solely as a Martial Artist is fine, but many cannot obtain a balance necessary to live a good life if that is their sole focus.

They can learn to be good parents, good citizens, good Leaders, good Students, good Mentors, but they have to actually go out into the world and do the work.

When being a Carpenter, be a Carpenter during the timeframe you have to be a Carpenter and then, when you get home, be at home, be a good Parent and Mentor to your children, be a good Husband or Wife.

I am still working on this.

I am NOT just a Martial Artist. I am a writer, sometimes (and not necessarily a good one), and Artist, a Father, a Mentor, a Leader in my field, a Husband, an Uncle, an advocate sometimes.

We all wear many hats, Martial Arts is a small part of that, but it should be foundational for how we approach things, how we execute tactics and strategy when tackling things.

It is not life, it is just a way to approach life that gives us tools.

Good for thought.