Forms Marathon

So I'm talking to Sifu Brinker a couple of weeks ago and I say, 'Hey, are we going to do that forms marathon, again?'. A couple minutes later, we are talking about something else and I am organizing the marathon. I honestly don't know how he does that, not only was I organizing it, I was totally excited about the challenge. Armed with a list of things to take care of, I was off and running. I thoroughly enjoyed the project, everyone I talked to was willing to help and do anything that was necessary. I must admit that I had a few moments of panic when I wasn't sure that we would be able to accomplish our mission but my fellow students came through in the end. Somewhere along the way, it didn't make a difference whether we completed the mission ( 24 hours of non-stop forms), it mattered that we worked together and had a great time doing it.
I had an amazing training experience to boot. I decided that I would concentrate only on Kempo 3 while I was at the marathon. I couldn't believe the level of focus I was able to achieve, my eye for detail improved and I was able to make some fundamental changes in how I do the form. I also had the privilege of watching my daughter reclaim a form that she had forgotten that she knew. She not only remembered all the moves, she was able to add her own style to it. During our evening shift, we were exposed to many different forms, from tai chi to the long spear form. It was really neat to see fellow students doing their favorite forms. All in all, it was a great experience.

Who are you?

When I think of great leaders, past and present, each one can be defined with a word. Hope, Courage, Determination, etc. I think that if each person, in the world, chose a word that they wanted to represent who they are and worked towards it, our world would be different. I am talking about 100% effort, with as much enthusiasm as some put towards being fastest, richest and bossiest. I think that is when people will start to be good leaders and have a positive impact on their environment. All the other things that they want to accomplish in their lives will fall into place as they put all their efforts in being one thing. I have been thinking about this all week and wondering what one word would describe be best. I am not sure and I think that is why sometimes I lose my direction, because I haven't quite put my finger on exactly where I am going. I have lots of ideas and I work really hard at all of them, but the one true direction has alluded me so far. This last month I have really appreciated the benefits of hard work and following through on what I say I will do, somewhere inside that is who I am.

LOA GAR

We have this form that we have to learn if we want to grade for our black belt. It is called Loa Gar. It is different than the other forms that I have learned so fa, in many ways. The moves and the stances are different and they do take some getting used to, I'm not there yet. It is also different in the sense that you may not learn it from a black belt (that's how we usually learn new forms). The challenge is that you have to learn it from another student. For me, the challenge came when most of the people that I would have been comfortable asking for help, got promoted to black belt, making them off limits. At first I was kinda scared and worried that I would not learn it in time to become at least proficient before the test. Then I began to worry about who I could learn it from, at first I had no idea where to start. Then I took a look around and started asking people what they knew and if they could teach me. My first Loa Gar teacher was my friend who was visiting from China. It was an interesting experience to put aside the ego (mine) and let someone teach me, especially a friend. It was totally awesome, she laid the ground work, explained the form and instilled in me the patience to settle down and let myself learn. I found myself wishing that she could teach me the whole form, that was not to be the case. She had to go back to China and continue her training (Saturday training is still not the same without her). So there I was, part of the form to practice and absolutely no comfort zone. I started asking other students who I had seen perform the form and/or practicing it. Some of them looked as uncomfortable as I felt at the prospect of helping a higher belt. It took some discussion but we managed to get passed it. I have worked with a few different people and it has been an amazing experience. I have gotten to know some of the other students(as martial artists) and how they train and I have stepped out of my comfort zone. I am much more comfortable going up to a fellow student and saying, 'Hey, you know that part in Loa Gar.... can you show me?' I am almost at the stage where I know all the moves ( I keep forgetting that last few moves) and I am sure to any of the black belts watching that it looks like a jig saw puzzle that doesn't quite fit, but I am now confident that I will not only learn the rest of the form, I will master it.
I hope that my actions have encouraged others to go outside their comfort zone and ask for help with the things that they are struggling with. We often talk about being one big family, in families we help and support each other, no matter what level you are at. I am very glad that I stepped outside my zone.

Robyn Kichko
Silent River Kung Fu
Stony Plain, AB, Canada

Just more learning

This was an amazing workout week. I managed to stay on task, even when the very tempting opportunity to have tea and chit chat with one of my friends was presented. The more I trained, the better I felt about myself and my goals. Taking consistent action has a profound affect on taking consistent action, for me. I kicked, sweated, repeated my forms until I couldn't and then at the end of the week, I stepped way out of my comfort box completely. I performed my forms on video tape for the purpose of studying how I move and how I can improve that movement. I was so nervous going in, I couldn't believe that I had agreed to use such a training tool. What could I possible learn that couldn't be accomplished in front of the mirror at the kwoon? Was I wrong!!!! Right after the taping, I brought my precious tape home and watched it. I was surprised that I was able to watch with some objectivity and learn something about how I am moving. It was completely cool. I am looking forward to seeing that tape many more times to see what I can learn. ( Of course, I have experienced a slight technology glitch, I can't seem to locate the videos on the camera, I am sure that I will figure it out!!!!!).
Those weren't the only learning moments that occurred this week. I received some feedback and instead of responding in a negative manner, I accepted what I heard and incorporated it into my training. It wasn't long ago that I would not have been able to process that type of information that quickly or with a positive outcome. It felt fantastic when all was said and done. (Of course, I am skipping over the crying and self-pity part of the purposes of keeping this positive.). I feel more in charge of who I am and the impact that the world around me can have on my mood, affect and ability to accomplish the things that I want.