So I am sharing this video with you. It is of the dojo that I am a part of. Just so you know, there is no footage of me - I apparently have a sixth sense when it comes to them recording things and have avoided being caught on camera. 😂 Why then would I post it? Because when I first started this venture of writing, I knew nothing of Martial Arts. But it definitely - somehow - had a hold on me. You see it in my stories even though I was writing before I learned Tai Chi, so in hindsight I should have known that I would one day be in a Dojo. Marital Arts teaches helps you become strong, independent, able to protect yourself... These are all good qualities, qualities that the people in my books embody or work to become. And I consider myself blessed to have happened upon the opportunity to learn Martial Arts. Of course, it was my daughter who was part of the Dojo first. I didn't even go in to watch her practice until she had a grappling tournament a month or so later, and even then I wasn't interested. I even brought my laptop so that I'd have something to do. However, I stopped bringing that with me within a week. I was so impressed with what I was hearing from Sifu Donahue that I started paying more attention to what was going on. Not only was I amazed at how powerful my daughter appeared on the mats, but I was also drawn in to what she was learning - not that I was ever going to take part in a class (life's funny that way). I practiced Tai Chi, that was my speed, my balance to my life. Or so I thought, I continued to go to the dojo and watch my daughter almost everyday of the week. I used to tell people that it was my way of repaying her for all the times she had to watch the boys practice for their sports with me. But honestly, I always watched her, which was unlike the sports any of my kids have tried out (minus wrestling). In the dojo, occasionally, I talked with other parents, but I am not as extraverted as I once was and I didn't usually instigate conversations. But even when I did, still I watched her. I practiced in the backyard with her, she used to love teaching me things, and honestly I loved it. Then came the day that I stepped on the mats. I had no idea how big of an impact it was going to have on me, I just knew I was super excited to be there. This dojo has two school on in Michigan and they don't just teach a fighting style, they also teach the Yang style Tai Chi (which wasn't the one I've been practicing), and meditation. One of my favorite things that is said is said before Meditation:
Mokuto (Japanese for close eyes/reflect):
Concentrate on the point between the eyebrows
Relax and watch the breath
Let go of all thoughts, worries, cares
Be here now
Meditation is the foundation of all true martial arts
To still, and thus control the mind, is of the utmost importance
The last 3 lines are like a warm blanket every time I hear them. Between learning the skills to protect and strengthen myself, I began to realize how I had allowed myself to be imprisoned by the things that made me feel broken. Mediation was a huge factor in this. I am still a long ways off from being mended, but at least I have a sanctuary that allows me to build strength to believe in myself. Writing has done such wonders for how I feel about myself, now tie that in with the positive energy of the dojo, Sifu, plus the education of how to practice controlling both my actions and my mind, and now I am becoming someone I can be proud of again. The battles against my "failures" - the darkness that makes me not able to see my strengths - has been the hardest I've come against, which is probably why I write what I write... Anyways, here's a video that the dojo put together:
(https://www.zenmartialarts.com)
Just a couple of other things that I have heard in the Dojo that helped me decide this was the right place to be. Some words that stay with me on the days I am not in the dojo - and that cause me to practice on those days.
Better to be a warrior in a garden, than a gardener in a war.
And then there is the Wushu Creed (which the kids recite):
Kung Fu is a discipline
of my body and mind.
I will be disciplined,
have self-control,
confidence,
concentration
patience,
and try as hard as I can
at everything I do
both in and outside the Dojo.
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