Struggling...why?

When I joined the Snake team I felt that I would have a bit of an advantage this go around as I was part of the UUBT 8 team.  I knew what this was mostly about and I knew what my weaknesses were from last time around.  However I seem to be experiencing those same weaknesses all over again.

                

 The biggest question that I keep asking myself is “why”?  Why am I not where I want to be right now?  Why am I not doing a better job of tracking my daily numbers?  Why haven’t I even started some of my personal requirements?  Why?

                 

When I stop and reflect upon this question, the answer is that I have not dedicated myself to this process fully.  Mastery is something that I truly want but am I prepared to put in the time and effort to truly walk on this path?  The answer that I come up with is no.  I have not prepared myself mentally to walk on this path every day.  So the next obvious question is why have I not mentally prepared myself yet?  I have known for some time that I was going to be part of this team and its not like it was a spur of the moment decision.  I have prior experience as being part of the UBBT 8 team, so why? 

If I am going to be honest with myself and my teammates I would have to say that the reason for this is that I have not taken this opportunity with enough seriousness.  I have treated the process so far as something like “I will get to it when I get to it”.  I have been lazy and not dedicated to the process and the benefits that it will provide.  This attitude is something that I have known for a long time, it is a flaw of my character and I have never admitted it publicly before.  However, now I feel is the time to reach out and admit one of my most flawed characteristics of my character.  This will be the starting point of my improvement not only as a martial artist but also as a human being.  I want this year to be the year that I not only improve as martial artist but also as father, husband, friend.  I humbly ask my teammates to kick my but if you see that I am missing blog entries.  I agree with Master Brinker 100% that if you are not blogging, you are not doing your other requirements.

Ian Repay

Student Of Silent River Kung Fu

Stony Plain, Alberta                       

David Suzuki – The good Doctor isn’t in…

I am not an overly active environmentalist but I do believe in doing my part to lead a healthy and somewhat “green” lifestyle.  I believe in sustainable living and I believe in knowing where my food comes from as much as possible.  I recycle as much as possible and try and reduce my “carbon foot print” as much as possible.Kung Fu has taught me allot about this aspect of my life.  I am much more active now than I have ever been.  However David Suzuki is a hypocrite and lacks humbleness of any kind.  With so many people hanging off his words and his place as a "leader" in the environmental movement, David Suzuki needs to spend some time in our Kwoon.  He would learn a thing or two about ego and humbleness.

As you can tell by now the one thing I have never been of is a fan of David Suzuki.  You can sure tell a lot about a person by the way they respond to being challenged.  Those with courage of conviction and the confidence that comes with real intellect will back their positions and rise to the occasion. Those whose sense of ego is mightier than their strength of character will retreat, resort to insults or not respond altogether.

So when David Suzuki – environmental guru, would-be benevolent dictator and all-around perfect human  – arrived in Ottawa Tuesday evening to tell a church filled with a paying audience what a sustainable future looks like, he shocked his own loyal supporters by aggressively refusing to speak with a Sun News reporter and her cameraman (who’d only arrived after a media release about the event from the Green Party was sent to the national press corps).  David Suzuki didn’t just refuse to speak to the reporter and her camera man. He refused to appear altogether, sending a handful of hostile event organizers to remove them from the premises. They would, eventually, but not before creating a real drama in front of a real audience that exposed the real nature of David Suzuki.

Suzuki never showed his face. The man who believes he leads by example, illuminates inconvenient truths and feels righteously empowered to bring down those he feels do wrong, refuses to be held to account. His critics, he believes, should be silenced.

David Suzuki encourages curiosity, critical thinking, questioning the world around you. Just don’t question him.

Ian Repay
Student of Silent River Kung Fu.
Stony Plain, Alberta.