Martial arts, as traditionally taught, has always been about life and death. For millennia it has presented the practitioner with a way to live better – as well as how to die better. In our context, “life” is to survive and then to succeed. “Death” is to live a memorable, fulfilling life with principle, and … [Read more…]
Monday mornings I train with Sifu. Every time we meet, he teaches a sparring combination – that is the curriculum for our time together. Setting aside the ridicule I endure and the mental button-pushing that he does, I always receive an assignment from him. He’ll say, “Listen, you have to work on this specific detail … [Read more…]
I’ve actually never told anybody this story because I’m not so proud of it. But I believe there’s a lesson in here for those of us who do Jiu-Jitsu and strive for a better practice. Growing up I was very, very poor. There were times when there wasn’t a lot of food – that kind of poor. And … [Read more…]