'In gathering saskatoons, and washing berries; therein lies the Tao.'
Claire Finnamore - August 30, 2009

Last night I submitted the last of my requirements to be eligible to test for Black Belt. It was a summary of my Personal Black Belt Requirements which I had established in December, and was due Sept 1. I had chosen nine goals for myself, and below, I will include exerpts from last nights report.

2. 41,100 pushups, 27,400 situps, 27,400 kicks.

Pushups = 34,765
Situps = 20,731
Kicks = 17,528

Two things interfered with my success on this front.

The first was the Winter Blues. Motivation to keep up the training routine ebbed in December, January and February. This is reflected in my numbers: I fell behind on 5509 pushups in Dec/Jan, and 6990 situps and 7050 kicks in Dec/Jan/Feb. Winter happens every year, and though I worked hard to pull myself out of the blues, I now see how much this hurt my success, and perhaps this will help me for the future.

The second interference was injury, in my case, osteoarthritis. In April and May, I was forced to take it easy on my knees and ankles to allow healing. I fell behind by 3405 kicks at this time. I could not control the effect injury had on my numbers: I could have done a better job controlling the effect motivation had on my numbers earlier in the year. It would have been better to have had a greater sense of urgency during the winter months.

3. 1000 repetitions of forms

I completed 828 forms. Again, the Winter Blues interfered with this one. However, the things that helped were; participation in the forms marathon, participation in the demo team, and actively teaching the form of Lao Gar, and Stick to fellow I Ho Chuan members.


6. Acts of Kindness:

d) Research Acts of Kindness guidelines and give each girls a book to read to get them thinking more about this.

I put up the poster on the fridge, and then Sifu Simpson’s poem from Kwoon talk. I didn’t find appropriate books. Instead, the girls read the book ‘They poured fire on us from the sky’ which is about some Sudanese boys who were orphaned by war, and became refugees in their own counry. The book is written in their own words, and they now live in America and travel the continent giving speeches about their ordeal and getting support for those still in Sudan. I thought the book would expand the girls sense of empathy for those who experience hunger, war, etc. Jill has finished the book and she says it was very impactful. Now I have to go into her room and find the book so that Janet can read it.

e) Pursue opportunities, small and formal, that the girls can participate in that will allow them to reflect on and perform acts of kindness throughout the year.

I took Janet to the Malawi Girls presentation. When Sifu Laurie went back to Malawi this year, she helped put together the medical supplies we donated, and she expressed an interest in having the school girls write letters to her and she write back. I’m not sure what came of this, because I forgot to ask Sifu Laurie about the letter we sent with the first aid supplies. Janet remains interested in this project; she asked after the letter writing idea last week. And earlier this month, Janet agreed to the idea of selling her old hoodies and tshirts so the proceeds could go to the benevolent fund, and she got the clothes, washed them, and hung the hoodies on the hangers, and was pleased with the estimate of money raised (about $90).

9. Daily Meditation: learn dragon breathing and perform it daily.

Instead of dragon breathing, I am learning the Chi Kung forms which put a heavy emphasis on breathing, and there is the standing meditation of 3 minutes, to be done 3 times daily. So, though I started late on this requirement (August), I feel it is much better than the original goal because it is so much more comprehensive, and the teacher is so qualified and experienced.

Conclusion:

I am surprised at how much I actually got done. The last requirement was the most surprising, because up until July, I had made no progress. Then the opportunity to take Sifu Olsvik’s Chi Kung classes came up, and the results were so much better than what I had aimed for. When it boils down to a common theme, I’d have to say, that once you set goals, don’t pass up opportunities. Even when you don’t think those opportunities apply to the goals, there you are achieving them. It’s like the spirit goes on auto pilot once the goal is set – and you gravitate towards the opportunities that help you fulfill them. The Chi Kung classes, the Lion Dance, I Ho Chuan, Malawi Girls, blogging, reading journeys, health set backs, kwoon talk challenges, forms marathons, and your own family’s interests and development, all provided the opportunities that made reaching my goals, or nearly reaching them, possible.

Well, I hope this long entry is helpful to anyone hoping to achieve a black belt in the future. This morning I recieved notification that my application to test for Black Belt has been approved. So I went out and picked the abundant crop of saskatoons. What I think I will need over the next 4 weeks, is Peace of Mind.

Last week was a good week.

Chi Kung class: This class is addressing a few challenges in my black belt testing. First is the flexibility test. Sifu Olsvik has assigned us a number of daily stretching excercises which will open up our hips. I've been working diligently on these exercises. Its amazing how inflexible most of us are, even with our kung fu training. Mrs. Crawford and I compared notes - we were both stiff and sore in areas of our hips that the kung fu stretching does not address. I am a little more excited than her about all this, probably because I have started to feel a little more flexibility, and she has not noticed that yet. Second is strength and endurance for the horse stance test. Again, Sifu Olsvik assigned us 20 minutes of modified horse stance daily. I admitted in class, that I am struggling with this one as I am so used to multitasking, that 20 minutes of simply standing in horse stance (don't have a TV) becomes guilt-ridden and unbearable. Anyhow, he said it had to be done, and the results, at minimum will be an effortles five minute horse stance in the black belt test. I'm not sure whether any of the sihings at Friday's class noticed, but Sifu Olsvik stood in a beautiful horse stance for a very long time - it had to be at least 20 minutes - still as stone, sturdy and relaxed! So, I need to renew my effort on this exercise. The third is breathing and, through the routines and exercises, a better awareness of my centre. It's helping with my Lung I & II, and sound focus. Coincidentally, Sifu Laurie brought her netti pot to Shaolin class on Saturday, and gave us a demonstration. Daily use of this device is supposed to reduce swelling and clear trapped allergens and other germs from the sinus passages, thereby making the proper breathing technique much more efficient, or, as in my case, it makes it possible. So I went to Sangsters Health Centre and bought one, and used it. Sure is weird, but not all that bad.

Orange Belt Class on Wednesday: I'm sure Sifu Prince is usually an excellent teacher. But he really outdid himself at this class. We practiced Hsieh Chein, which is a very weak form for me, partly due to the backward shoulder roll (bad for my left shoulder), and partly because sound focus is something I do not do well at, if at all. Sure enough, Sifu Prince had us belting out our Hsieh Chein, and lots of sound focus. This class was a high quality class. I benefitted greatly from it, and I noticed that ALL of the students improved their forms in Hsieh Chein, Hung I, and Long I with Sifu Prince's guidance.

Our Journals: I do go out on a limb a bit, expressing my inner stuggles etc. I've always felt it would be helpful to others, to tell it how it really is for me, because if I am struggling, then more than likely, ten other people will have the same issues. But after last week's entry, I feel that I benefitted more than anyone else. The response from the students and sifus was overwhelming. Who would have thought that other people, students and sifus alike, had struggled with the same things, and really cared whether I got past these obstacles? Its a strange sensation, and I feel almost guilty and uncomfortable, because it now feels like the focus is on me. With this kind of support, I HAVE to give it my all, and if I don't succeed . . . And I worry that the other sihings are getting as much out of this support as myself. I hope that they benefitted from the board breaking practices as much as I did; and that they also needed to review and practice the close-combat and takedown basics covered in sihing class.

The Sihing Class Five sihings attended. It had to be at least 20 sifus also in attendance. And it wasn't a matter of them being there for something else; no discussions or other business was attened to, no meetings, no bag work or situps and pushups off to the side; they were all totally focused on the sihings, advising and guiding us through our class. That was really awesome.

This stage of the training towards black belt testing has become very personal. I suppose everyone has their own personal demons in life that they either try to overcome or ignore, manage or bury, accept or deflect. I guess its a measure of the black belt test, that one eventually has to address oneself at this level. I get the feeling that the rest of the sihings have also come to this very personal struggle in their training. We have all gotten rather quiet and subdued.

Sometimes I feel like giving up. After all, its not work, or family, or finances. And I've really enjoyed being a sihing, so why not continue as one? Why do I need to add this stress, which seems so unneccessary, to the stresses of my own personal life? Its such a relief when I imagine my life without the upcoming test, or the responsibility of being a sifu, and continuing into the next year enjoying the privileges of being in I Ho Chuan, Chi Gong, Lion Dance, the workshops, seminars, and so on.

Then I feel bad about Sifu Brinker. Over and over again for the past 10 years, I've heard him say that this is the most important thing you will ever do; it will transform you . . . blah blah blah. But he says it with such conviction that i need to stop for a moment and properly think about those statements. Why is it the most important thing for me? Why will it transform me? I find that the answer lies within my present struggles. It's all about self improvement, at a level that previous tests in my life have not addressed. Furthermore, this test and journey has a critical impact on the things that I deem more important in my life - family, job, health and well-being. Thus far, this journey has indeed transformed me. There's sifu brinker, on the other side of this giant gorge, beckoning and saying, 'No, THIS will transform you.'

Last week was complete self destruction. My kung fu training was all but obliterated. I lost my faith in hope. I chastized my self for believing. I pretty much resigned myself to failure.

Still, I am aware of a tiny seed of optimism flickering occassionally in the dark. I think it starts with something Sifu Brinker has been repeating lately - "Look at where you've started and how far you've come".

So I opened up my journals, and did some math.

Pushups: I've done 33,335 since December 1. My goal is to do 41,000 by Sept 1. I need to do 334 a day over the next 23 days to achieve the goal. It's possible.

Situps: I've done 19,200 since December 1. My goal is to do 27,400 by Sept 1. I need to do 356 daily over the next 23 days. I guess its possible.

Kicks: I've done 15,200 since December 1. My goal is to do 27,400 by Sept 1. I need to do 535 daily over the next 23 days. Its impractical.

Forms: I've done 754 since December 1. My goal is to do 1000 by Sept 1. I need to do 11 per day over the next 23 days. I can do this.

And I've completed my 26,000 pushups.