Heading into Thanksgiving

So, its been a while since my last article, and even longer since I had any dialogs with anyone. I am wondering how everybody is doing, and WHAT everybody is doing/ How are classes going, how are your students faring? Has there been any discussion about the promotions in rank and teaching titles since I sent them out?

Its important to sit down every so often with each of your students to let them know how they are doing and also what is expected of them. You should be teaching them at a level just slightly above where they are, so that the training draws out of them, the best that we can expect. Not the best compared to anyone else, but the best that each of them can give. Their daily struggle should be to improve in a logical, reasonable manner, and the competition that best serves is against themselves. Improving a little each day, although as human beings we cannot always promise that we will improve, but we can promise that we will always try.

Soke Jim Lloyd always used to say that even something as simple as doing 5 more pushups than you could do yesterday would be wonderful. Maestro Mike Mulconery would push us in class to do just 100 more finger-flicks in each of the 4 directions (forwards, backwards, up, and sideways) , than we could do the day before. Kwang Jang David Sheram, my Tang Soo Do Moo Duk Kwan teacher would say, "Just 5 more front kicks," (with each leg of course!)

Do you see the point? Every day is a new start. Every day is a fresh chance to move forward no matter the successes or failures of the previous day. Every day is a chance to thank God or whatever divinity you believe in for the blessings you have received, for the family and friends who are still with us, and for the family and friends who have gone on to their reward. Even if you don't believe in anything specifically, there are still blessings you can be thankful for.

Coming up on Thanksgiving (and later on, Christmas) is a great time to reflect on all that has happened to us this year. For us teachers, in addition to our friends and family, we shuold be thankful for the students who have been sent our way. Students should be thankful for their teachers who guide them along whatever path, and for their classmates, who are fellow sufferers! (Just kidding, no martial arts teacher I know makes their students suffer. Right? Right?)

Anyway, if I don't write again before Thanksgiving, just know that I am thankful for all of you.

God bless!

Soke Steve