Sabumnim's Corner

Wisdom

Wisdom is an incredible important trait, and it refers to knowing what to do to live a good life.  There are many people who are intelligent but not wise.  Intelligence refers to knowing many facts or even how to solve many different problems.  Wisdom refers to knowing how to do things, but also which things should be done and which should not be done.

Wise people will usually listen much more than they speak.  they are observant to everything going on around them.  It’s possible to have wisdom (knowing what to do) without discipline (the ability to do it), but they are usually paired.  For one thing, people don’t become wise without discipline.  For another, wise people can understand the value of training themselves to have the discipline that they know is necessary for accomplishing their goals.

Wisdom comes with time.  That is why it is so important to respect your elders.  When was the last time you sat down with your parents or grandparents and really listened?  People who have been through times much worse than today can tell us how they survived and this advice will help us as well.

“Wisdom is knowing what to do next; Skill is knowing how to do it, and Virtue is doing it.” David Starr Jordan

TO DO:

Name 3 people in your life who you really consider to be wise:

1._____________________

2._____________________

3._____________________

Sit down with your parents or grandparents and really listen to them.  Ask them questions.  What did you learn?

Signature____________________  Date____________

We had our annual mountain training at KAT yesterday. I had a lot of time to reflect, and observe, and this is what I saw.

I saw a man with no legs climbing – very, very slowly – up the mountain. Why would he do something like that? There was no thousand dollar prize or gold medal awaiting him at the top. If he lost his legs serving his country, than surely, he didn’t need to earn anyone’s respect. Struggling when you don’t have to, for no other reason than the struggle itself, that is true martial arts.

I saw a patch of flowers at 14,000 feet. It’s an environment so inhospitable that ordinarily, nothing grows. The sign at the base said it takes 1000 years to develop just one inch of topsoil. Driving wind, biting cold, powerful UV light limit life to small lichens clinging to rocks. Yet even here, a flower dared to bloom. A samauri could look up at a cherry blossom and smile as he bled to death. Appreciating an island of beauty in a sea of pain, that is true martial arts.

I saw a family bound not by blood, but by bonds nearly as strong. I saw people helping each other, encouraging each other, sharing food, carrying others’ backpacks, lifting others’ spirits. Why? It was all so that when chests heaving, legs burning, hair matted to a forehead dripping with sweat, some cried “I can’t go on anymore” they were able to prove themselves wrong. Such a community- that is true martial arts.

Without witnessing one kick, punch, or throw, yesterday I saw true martial arts.

We just wanted to thank everyone who voted to make us runner up in Parenthood Magazine’s 2010 Family Favorite Contest. We won out of numerous martial arts schools in Colorado. You can find the full list of winners at:

http://www.flashedition.com/publication/?m=6387&l=1

Helping with Chun Ji in the hospital soon after my daughter was born.

Catalyst

In chemistry, a catalyst is a substance that participates in a chemical reaction without being one of the chemicals either used up or produced. For instance, chemical A might mix with chemical B to form chemical C. However, if you inserted the catalyst, the same reaction would occur, just at a much faster rate. Catalysts act by making the conditions more favorable (better environment, bringing molecules closer, etc) for the reaction. In biology, most enzymes are catalysts.

How does this relate to our training? A certain technique could act as a catalyst by causing everything else to fall into place. For instance, adding a back kick to your sparring game could stop your partner from rushing in to you. That would enable you to set the tempo of the match, conserve your energy, and keep your partner off guard.

Certain players often act as catalysts in team sports. For instance, one player might join the team and get one gold medal. But if he causes everyone around him to work harder, then his value to the team will be much more than the one medal he wins. One person can often fire a team up and inspire them. These people act as catalysts for their team.

To Do:

Name a player who has had a catalytic effect on a team you are on:

What was it about this person that caused the rest of the team to change into something better?

Kindness

Kindness is the simple act of being kind. Notice that being kind to someone doesn’t mean that you have to agree with them or even like them. Kindness is the opposite of cruelty.

In the middle ages, Kindness was considered one of the “Knightly Virtues” that all people should strive to possess. Kindness means being nice and pleasant to others without wanting any reward in return. If you are nice to someone only because you want them to give you something, that is not true kindness.

Kindness could also involve recognizing other people’s talents and contributions. Simply thanking someone for something they do anyway can go a long way towards showing that you do not take them for granted. For instance, it’s the job of parents to take care of their children, but children should still stop and thank their parents for all that they do.

“Constant kindness can accomplish much. As the sun makes ice melt, kindness causes misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility to evaporate.”

-Albert Schweitzer, 1952 Nobel Peace Prize Winner.

To Do: Participate in 25 random acts of kindness this month.

1. _______________________
2. _______________________
3. _______________________
4. _______________________
5. _______________________
6. _______________________
7. _______________________
8. _______________________
9. _______________________
10. _______________________
11. _______________________
12. _______________________
13. _______________________
14. _______________________
15. _______________________
16. _______________________
17. _______________________
18. _______________________
19. _______________________
20. _______________________
21. _______________________
22. _______________________
23. _______________________
24. _______________________
25. _______________________

Hey guys! We had some problems with blogger disabling FTP publishing, so had to install wordpress. Bear with us a minute until we get the new site up and running.

Discipline

Discipline is the control of an environment based on rules or guidelines.

Self-discipline is the training of ones self to put forth effort in to accomplishing something difficult, or controlling yourself in situations where you may want to be doing something else at the time.

Both discipline and self discipline are essential to the martial arts. If the leader is not a disciplinarian in some form and exerts no control over the class, then little can get done in a class period and the environment is not ideal for learning.

Self-discipline should be an on-going goal for every martial artist! Not only is it essential for every person to have self-discipline to control themselves in class to pay attention, stand still and not interrupt the class with self indulgences such as moving around when everyone should be standing still or talking to or playing with friends when they should be practicing a drill, but most importantly to have enough self-discipline to push themselves to train to their full potential. Every person has a choice in class and in life to do the drill that is asked of them quickly and with little technique and effort just to get it done and over with, or to push themselves to turn their hips a little more, jump a little higher, kick a little harder and consciously try to perfect their skill and get the most out of every moment.

I challenge you this month to put forth a conscious effort into your self-discipline as a martial artist and in life in general.

Challenge

A challenge is something that is difficult for you to overcome. Challenges are an integral part of the process of becoming stronger. Challenges provide motivation, and also specific obstacles to overcome. You could think of each challenge as a step, and the staircase the process of getting better.

Competition can be good for motivation because it provides challenges. This includes trying to defeat another person. In the end, the only true challenge is to reach your full potential, but having other people can definitely push you to become better.

You will get much more out of class or life if you challenge yourself. For instance, you could do pushups ‘comfortably’ going down, or you could really challenge yourself to hit the ground with your nose each time.

It’s important that challenges, like goals, be difficult but reachable. Challenging a white belt to win the Olympics next year just isn’t reasonable. The belt system has been specifically set up to always provide the next challenge for all of the students. The process of overcoming slightly more difficult challenges builds tremendous confidence.

“Accept the challenges so that you may feel the exhilaration of victory.”
-General George Patton (American General, WW2)

TO DO:

Give yourself a challenge this month. Describe it in Detail.

(End of the Month) Did you meet your challenge? Why or Why Not?