A Physical Poem Penned With Muscle and Bone

My art is what defines me, it is tangled into my being just as steadfast as my very blood.
Without it I would be incomplete.
A half filled shell.
The hollow vacant spaces of my soul would echo with need, substance.
It is a raging fire that burns a swift path throughout my veins.
A drumming pulse of passion.
Strength, need, determination.
I build myself on it, through it I have discovered who I am, what I need, how I should live.
It is my love, I am eternally dependent on it's harsh teachings.
Dry. Parched. I thirst for deep enriching insights.
Absorbing information and relaying it into a physical sonnet penned with my muscles and my bone.
A tangible poetry; words, sentences, paragraphs strung together in motion.
I dance a lethal dance, a dose of beauty and pain.
I sing a song, the chords surging through my body. A crescendo upon impact.
Elongated circles, rounded off corners, straight sharp angles, a specific geometric display, sheer brillance.
It is simple and it is complex.
This is my Kenpo, this is myself.

Not Your Typical Hobby

My hobby demands bruises, blood and broken bones.
It's as if my veins have been filled with gasoline and my hobby ignited the fuel.
You have to be willing to offer up your all, constantly.
Just when you believe you've become an expert on a topic concerning it someone wiser than you comes along and severely humbles you.
My hobby envelops my mind, it tests my stamina, dares me to push my body to it's limits, then beyond. It requires dedication, insists on a thirst for more.
The thing about my hobby is that it isn't a hobby at all, it's a way of life.
It is a part of me, it defines me, it completes me.

My Passion, My Art, Myself.

In the still of the darkest hour of the night I lie awake.
Thoughts of what I have discovered on my path and what still remains untouched.
In the blinding darkness I confess aloud to myself that I would die without my Art.
Were I ever forbidden to live the Journey than to perish would be the only consoling.
Not simply a general pastime for me, a way of life.
My very breath resonates the passion for my Art.
It is what I am; my passion, my Art, myself.

It's Not a Race

When I hear people refer to karate as a sport I have to grit my teeth and hold my tongue. Karate is NOT a sport in my opinion. There are multiple reasons for why I feel this way but I'll focus on the one that I consider the most important. It's not a competition.

Now I'm sure some readers are going to jump to, "well we compete in tournaments." I've always seen tournaments as a chance to share your art with others. Giving people that don't practice the same art as you a taste of what you do. The participant who displays the most convincing kata and who utilizes the most effective sparring technique is considered, (according to the tournament's standards), the winner. Tournaments are not competition against each other; it's a display of what each participant holds within.

I've been training in Kenpo for nearly three years and I am well aware that I'm just a baby. I have so much still to learn but all the time in the world to learn it. It's not a race; one of my biggest pet peeves is a martial artist who is rank hungry. Mr. Parker has a very poignant quote pertaining to this issue; "Although belt color may show, it is no proof that you know."

Although you are wearing a belt, whatever color it may be, that does not mean that you completely comprehend what that color and the colors below that have to teach you. This is why i have an issue with rank hungry individuals. There is a difference in knowing the material and understanding it past the physical, the mechanical.

Keep in mind when you're going for your next rank that this is not a competition. Your rank doesn't have a thing to do with your classmates, or your instructor. It's all about you. It's not a race, so there is no "beating others to the finish line" because you are the only one on the track. There is a saying that I've heard several times; "Once you become a Black Belt in Kenpo you begin learning. Everything before Black Belt is just you earning the right to learn,"

Enjoy earning your right!