The One Where I Found What I Had Thought Was Lost

Bear with me ladies and gents, this will probably be long and wordy.

To say that then less then enthused about Kenpo in the past year is a severe understatement. I have been struggling for quite some time with it, so long actually that I don't honestly know when it began. 

Let me back up, when I first began training in Kenpo in July 2008 I was absolutely on fire! It's all I thought and talked about and all I did and it was that way for years. Fast forward to year 4 or 5 in Kenpo and that roaring fire was more of a matchstick flame; not long after that it was basically ebbing coals. I actually found myself dreading class, it wasn't attending the school part that I didn't like spending time with the students and their parents that never went away, but I hated the idea of getting out on the mat. 

I wanted to quit so very badly, I think one time I even told Gene that I quit. Honestly I really couldn't understand why hated it so much, Kenpo practically save me it definitely kept me sane. When I found Kenpo I had no friends, I have just moved to the Midwest and I needed an extracurricular desperately, it was exactly what the doctor ordered. I kept thinking to myself, "Kenpo is your passion! It made you who you are! Kenpo is you!" Despite the mantra I was still dreading it. 

It took me a while to figure it out, and when I did there ended up being three main factors;

1) I have been the same rank for almost 3 1/2 years. When Gene became my instructor I recertified for all previous rank under him; meaning we went back and he re-taught me every single thing straight from the book starting with Delayed Sword. This was something that I wanted and honestly if the smallest of the three factors but it did manage to make the list. 

2) I gained weight. SURPRISE!!! My metabolism at age 19 is not the same age 22, or 24 for that matter! Gaining weight slowed me down and maybe bad the techniques I was supposed to do and techniques I used to be good at. Unsurprisingly I became depressed, but instead of combating it in order to fix the problem I ate my feelings and the problem ensued. Literally just three weeks ago I decided to fix it and I've been very diligent with that decision already seeing results.

3) factor three I did not realize until I was on my way home from work tonight. You see Gene was out of town for part of last week and this week as well, so with the assistance of our sensational assistant instructors I have been running SWKA. (huge thank you to Clinton George and Mark Dalen without you I don't know what Gene and I would do.) no this is not the first time I've ran the school without Gene but it is the first time in a while, I can't lie it is both intimidating and difficult. On my way home to grab my gi and check on the fur babies I casually thought to myself; "I am pumped for Kenpo." 

Now I'm not sure how you do a double take with yourself concerning a thought you formulated only in your brain but I assure you I did just that. 

"I am pumped for Kenpo! I am pumped for Kenpo! I'm not just preparing myself to go to class tonight, I actually CANNOT WAIT TO GO!" 

I am so glad that is pulling into my driveway when the thought occurred because I sat in my car for a few moments crying actual tears of joy. I have my Kenpo back, my fire is returning. I can literally feel those flames rebuilding inside my stomach and all I could do was cry because there was a time when I thought but those claims were gone forever.  

Teaching these past two weeks show me just how much I didn't know I was missing. I haven't really assisted teaching classes in probably a year. But this week, no today, I realized I need this! I need to be a part of helping build other Kenpoists on their journey. I need to help pass on the Flame, not only for the sake of preserving Mr. Parker's Kenpo but for myself. 

Now if you'll excuse me I have some classes I have to go teach! :) 

6 Questions Post Promotion-Dorian Burns

I'm going to start publishing quick little interviews that I have begun with our students after they receive a promotion. First

 up on the blog is Mr. Dorian Burns. 

 

Student: Dorian Burns

Age: 11

Started Training At SWKA: September 2011

Current Rank: Jr. Orange Belt.

Me: "Alright buddy! So how do you feel?"

Dorian: "I feel happy! I feel super pumped!"

Me: "Good deal! So Dorian why did you want to start Kenpo?"

Dorian: "I really just wanted to learn how to defend myself and other people. If someone was hurting someone else I wanted to be able to help people."

Me: "Do you feel better about being able to defend yourself now?" 

Dorian: "Yeah, I remember seeing someone picking on someone on the playground before I started Kenpo. I didn't know how to tell him to stop. So I jumped on the bully's back and I tried to choke him. But Kenpo taught me that it's much better to find a teacher or an adult first. That's the best option. My mom and dad taught me that too."

Me: "What do you love about Kenpo?"

Dorian: I love like, new techniques. I love learning them. Every time I get a new technique it helps fill in more of my empty time during the day, because I'm not allowed to always be on the Xbox."

Me: "What is the hardest thing about Kenpo?"

Dorian: "Hardest thing is remembering stuff. But when I practice and practice then it all comes back to me." 

Me: "Dorian are you going to get your Black Belt?"

Dorian: "Someday! When I'm probably as old as Mr. Braden!" 

17 Truths of Being an American Kenpoist

It's been far too long since I've blogged, I thought a fun post would be a great way to jump back into the swing of it! Feel free to share with other Kenpoists! 

1) Air Kenpo is the worst, absolute worst!

2) Running the line is probably your favorite

3) You own multiple pieces of Kenpo jewelry 

4) Seminar weekends are always better than tournament weekends, so much knowledge!!

5) You face palm when people think the universal symbol is a spider web. 

6) You exclaim every time Elvis is mentioned "he did Kenpo"

7) If you're a female Kenpoist you despise being "babied"

8) If you don't have a Kenpo related tattoo you've considered it 

9) You've watched Kill The Golden Goose; you know it was terrible, you still get excited because it's Mr. Parker! 

10)You love to talk up the promotional kick to White Belts about to receive their Yellow because that's what all the upper belts did to terrify you!

11) You get excited and pumped about bruises; (you probably call them Kenpo Kisses), you also show them to your non-Kenpoist friends enthusiastically- they think you're insane. 

12) Meeting other Kenpoists from different schools is like discovering family members you didn't know you had!

13) You often lovingly say to other Kenpoists "can't wait to spar you!"

14) You've YouTubed "American Kenpo" and quickly realized how terrible an idea that was. 

15) You've listened to "When Kenpo Strikes."

16) You LOVE Thundering Hammers and 5 Swords!

17) You're always scouring the Internet for Kenpo books you can add to your library

An Open Letter To SWKA’s parents and students

This letter is to say thank you, for so many different things.

 

First, for choosing us either to be a part of your own or your child’s Journey in karate. We know we’re not the only school in the local area, we know we’re not the biggest building with the latest furnishings, and we know we’re not located in the prime optimal location for Saint Joseph but you chose us anyway. You picked the little karate school in the rock faced building nestled quietly in Downtown. The school that has only one Black Belt and has only been open two and a half years. You took a chance on us and we thank you. J

 

Second, for operating like a family. That was what we desired more than anything when we opened this school. We wanted it to run as much like a family as was possible. We support each other, we give each other advice, we help each other in our training and offer a shoulder and a hug where it’s needed. I absolutely love this karate family that continues to grow. I love seeing everyone interact with each other, I love seeing birthdays celebrated and achievements earned and the entire school be excited. It’s something we always hoped would happen and we are still in awe that this is a reality.

 

Third, for diligence and patience. We live in a time where instant gratification is everywhere. Where kids and adults are being given Black Belts, not earning them but being given them. You can’t buy a Black Belt through us you have to work for it. It’s so refreshing to have a group of people that understand karate is difficult. It’s something that you have to work for, something you have to practice consistently at and constantly put forth an effort to make any headway. We can’t express how proud we are that our students show such drive and integrity. You are the people who didn’t gasp or even bat an eye when you were told it takes years to gain rank in Kenpo. In fact several of you stated that was what you were looking for all along. We truly have an outstanding group of students and parents to be so supportive and understanding  and dedicated which is exactly what I believe every karate school needs.

 

We have so many wonderful things coming our way, and this school will continue to grow and become greater with time I’m sure. I’m so ecstatic to be a part of this school. So one last time, thank you.  

Practice, Practice, Practice.

SWKA just had a great weekend seminar with Mr. Rich Hale! I hope everyone learned as much and I did and had as much fun!! As always Mr. H covered many things in his seminar but one that really seemed to stick out is the one I'm going to share with you guys today. :) We have all heard the phrase; "practice makes perfect." Well that's not exactly true. 

Mr. Hale used the analogy of someone learning how to play an instrument for the very first time; you can't expect to pick up a guitar and strum on the strings for hours and hours and music just begin to play. You have to learn chords, notes, how to tune it etc. Then when you practice you have to practice correctly. CORRECTLY is the key. 

Bringing it back to Kenpo; if you go to practice and you say "I'm going to practice by throwing 100 left snapping front ball kicks today," there is a chance that as you practice your kicks sloppy. You may start to pull your kicks, or your "snapping" becomes more like "flopping." So if you practiced a kick 100 times but became tired around the 40th kick them you most likely practices kicks 41-100 worse than kicks 1-41. 

Mr. Hale's suggestion is this, practice a kick correctly say 20 times, (or whatever is a comfortable number for you), then switch to something else. Kick with the rear foot or work your strikes in a horse stance, just change it up so whatever you are practicing you're doing it correctly and benefiting each time. 

Forms are a bit different when you're practicing to make them better. Mr. Hale's suggestion is when you practice your forms find individual pieces to place a focus on. Example: practice Short Form 1 five times in a row focusing only on your foot placement. Solid Neutral Bows, no fidgeting of your foot before transitioning into your next stance, etc. Then focus the next five practices on something different, such as keeping your eyes straight forward rather than glancing up and/or down, or focus on generating solid power in your blocks, or generating rotational force. The point is to keep your mind and body from becoming stagnant during your training. 

Mr. Duffy has a phrase that I am particularly fond of; "Practice makes permanent."

What I want you to take away from this post is that you will always get out of training what you put into it. Slow to learn, slow to forget. 

Those Gosh Darn Facebook Egos

"Any man who says 'I am king,' is no true king." -Tywin Lannister. I never anticipated that I would use a Lannister quote in a positive manner in a karate blog post, but there it is! For those of you that aren't familiar with the Game of Thrones universe I'll catch you up quickly, Tywin Lannister is a very powerful leader and the right hand man to the King of the realm, his teenage grandson Joffrey. Joffrey is basically the medieval version of Sid, the kid from Toy Story who tortures toys for fun, Joffrey's toys are citizens however. In a particular moment of twisted evil plotting Tywin puts his foot down and tells his grandson that enough is enough. Joffrey naturally responds back with 'but I am the king!' Leading Tywin to say my favorite line of the entire series, and the reason this blog was sparked today. "Any man who says 'I am king,' is no true king." 

I haven't been in the world of martial arts as long as I want to be, but I've been in it long enough to see my fair share of ego, and boy is there a lot of it on Facebook. 

Here are my top 5 favorite (and by favorite I mean most annoying) ego types

1) The ones that post all the time about how tough they are.

2) The ones who "challenge" others, both intellectually and physically. 

3) The ones who feel the need to defend a decision they've made relating to their martial arts journey over and over and OVER again. 

4) The ones who hijack comment on other's posts in order to talk about themselves/promote themselves/stroke those pretty ego tail feathers. 

5) The ones who can't stand someone outranking them so they post vague hateful statuses to rally the masses into a big hate frenzy.  

Of course that's not all, but those are the ones that seem to be most common; when I first started Kenpo I was a wide eyed 18 year old and I was about as naive as you can get. I added every martial artist that requested me, because I wanted to immerse myself into this new world and meet and communicate with as many martial artists as I could. Well that turned out to be good and bad. I've met some wonderful people that have changed my life and impacted me in such a positive way. On the other hand I've ran into so many egotistical people that I may develop tendinitis from all the back peddling I've done via the "Unfriend" button. 

Here are some of my favorite quotes that I love from Mr. Ed Parker's book The Zen Of Kenpo that I relate to egos.

"Whatever the attitude, so is the response." Pg. 6

"A martial artist who boasts of being IN the art longer than another forgets that the person being accused may have been AT the art longer than he." Pg. 10

"When one willingly and continuously boasts of his loyalty, anticipate toasting his departure," Pg. 10

"For every champion in the ring today, there are at least two who remain unknown and uncrowned." Pg. 12 

"Communication occurs when both parties talk and listen. When only one does all the talking, he certainly is not listening." Pg. 20

"A loss can be worth the experience if you gain something more valuable from it." Pg. 35

"One becomes great when he comes to the realization that what he knows is very little." Pg. 46

"How we see ourselves is not necessarily how we are." Pg. 90

So, my advice is simply this, take an extra moment before you click the post button to review the status you just typed, or that macho photo you're about to share. Be sure that it reflects the kind of person you want to be, and what you want other people to see. Hide your weapon my friends. Just like good old Tywin said; "Any man who says 'I am king,' is no true king." 

I'll leave you with one more quote of Mr. Parker's from his Zen book; "I would rather be showered with humility than be sprinkled with conceit." Pg. 46

Tournaments!

I often have parents ask me what is good about tournaments and why they should consider taking their kids to one. So I decided to blog about my reasons, why I think you should or shouldn't want to participate in a tournament. 

Why You Shouldn't Go To A Tournament 

1) If a trophy is the only thing that you care about. 

-Honestly you can go to your local trophy shop and purchase nearly the exact same type of trophy for $5.00. Trophies are nice, they're sparkly and make great bragging rights, but they're really not that important. 

2) If you're going with the intention of harming your opponent. 

-Really this should need no further discussion. If you're only training in karate so you can hurt someone than shame on you. I've known a few people who refuse to participate in tournament sparring because they've had one bad experience with an overly aggressive fighter who didn't respect the rules. If all you're concerned with is harming your opponent to prove how macho and tough you are then you need to reconsider your priorities mate. 

This is a short list, but I feel my two reasons are absolutely necessary. There's no room for egos, especially in a tournament. 

Why You Should Go To A Tournament

While I really only have two main reasons for why you shouldn't participate in a tournament, I have tons of reasons why you should. Here's my top ten! 

1) You get to meet new people. 

-This is my absolute favorite part of tournaments. Especially open tournaments! Not only do you get to meet people from different places but people who train in different styles too! Some of my greatest friends I've met at tournaments. Even if you train in different styles, the world of karate truly can be like a family if you let it. 

2) Receiving tips from outside sources. 

-Judges who are kind enough to offer suggestions and comments after I compete are my favorite!! 9 times out of 10 they aren't instructors from your school, so they're able to provide an outsider's opinion on how you performed. 

3) Being exposed to different arts. 

-It's so interesting to me to see how other styles train. Watching other arts compete especially in forms is always a fun thing to do. After your heartbeat slows down and you don't have to worry about your own competition anymore of course! 

4) Having the opportunity to train hard in preparation for something. 

-Every January I get the itch. Tournament season is coming, soon after I start catching myself running through my form in my head whenever I can't work on it physically. That extra nudge just makes you better and makes you train harder. 

5) Learning about other events in the area. 

-Often while tournaments are running they'll announce other upcoming tournaments and events in the local area. It's nice being able to learn about other events you may not have heard about otherwise.

6) The adrenaline rush. 

-When I line up and the judges are seconds from calling my name my heart races, blood thrums in my ears and I'm terrified. Something happens when I step into the ring though, it's like my blood is lit on fire. A good old adrenaline rush! 

7) Seeing old friends. 

- Earlier I mentioned meeting new people, one of the really cool things about attending tournaments for a period of time is you start to recognize faces. You begin making friends and look forward to reuniting with them at those annual events. 

8) Watching the Black Belts compete. 

-This one is obviously aimed at us under belts and its one of the best parts in my opinion. I definitely recommend sticking around for the Black Belt divisions, they always prove to be a good show! 

9) The memories. 

-Pretty self explanatory, you do make some great memories with equally great people or at least I seem to. 

10) It's just plain fun. 

- Karate is hard, and it's definitely a lot of work. So an opportunity to spend a day doing something you've worked hard at and love with others who love it to is bound to be a good day. The most important thing to remember when you go to a tournament is to have fun. Wether you win or lose there are always experiences you can take away from tournaments, having fun though that's the important part.