Pleasure and Pain

Part II

 

Once upon a midnight dreary, 
while I pondered, weak and weary,

Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore—

    While I nodded, nearly napping,

 suddenly there came a tapping,

As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.

“’Tis some visitor,” I muttered,
 “tapping at my chamber door—

            Only this and nothing more.

The Raven

-Edgar Allen Poe-

Since my experiment regarding the validity of the 'tap tap' use of Kyusho in self defense
was 'so rudely interrupted'  by the holidays, this segment has been delayed...

What we do know about the use of this style of defense is that it's effectiveness
is minimized, if not eliminated by body conditioning (iron shirt ect.)
If we throw  a conditioned mind into the mix, it's unlikely it's of any use at all.

When combined with Uechi Ryu as a foundation (delivery system); as demonstrated
 by Jim Maloney, Art Rabesa, Ed Hulse, Van Canna  and others 'in the know',
Kyusho acts like a kind of  'GPS'  for the Lamborgini of infighting styles.

My friend Denise is a blogger 'of the heart', she would say,

In life we either make good or bad choices.

 The bad ones bring pleasure for a little while but the pain always follows.

 The good choices may cause pain but our heart tells us it's right.
  Our way is not always the best way but,
 doing something right when no one is watching
Is a signature of our personal truth, our essence.

 The resulting 'feel good, feeling' empowers us for the next 'fight'. 

I find it somewhat empowering to believe that I have a functional 'GPS'
onboard when it's 'go time' but there is no substitute for 
old fashioned training and conditioning.

The Periphery of Greatness

The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long.

And you have burned so very, very brightly.

-Blade runner (1982)-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_saUN4j7Gw

 Benaiah  was a valiant fighter who performed great exploits.

 He struck down Moab’s two mightiest warriors.

 He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion.

  He struck down a huge Egyptian

 who had a spear in his hand, with a club.

 He snatched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with it.

Be a Lion Chaser !!

It's not the compromise of the cautious....
 but the blood of martyrs that is the seed of greatness.
History doesn't say  Benaiah was a prudent warrior it says he was a valiant one.
A normal person would run away, not a lion chaser !
We don't see 500 pound problems, we see giant opportunities.

We grab life by the mane......
A lion chaser doesn't try to avoid situations where the odds are against them.
A lion chaser knows that going against the odds
 sets the stage for unparalleled results.

Those are the experiences that make life worth living.
Those are the experiences worth telling stories about.

Black belt Candidate Robbie 'Bic' Thompson leading Grand Master Buz Durkin

Joe Lewis earned a reputation as a gifted athlete and was obsessed with training.
If he worked late,
 he would sneak into a storage closet to get his workouts in while his platoon slept.
He earned his first black belt in just three months time, the second in seven.
 He worked out between 3 and 5 hours per day.

You'll never know history's opinion of your story,

'The Animals of Uechi Ryu'

 

 Focus on doing the right thing, and not on other people’s opinion!

I take it personally when a student 'loses their way'.......
But I've learned that I can only show them the path; not walk it for them.

 Direct your children onto the right path,

and when they are older, they will not leave it.

 

Proverbs 22:6