"No one can whistle a symphony. It takes an orchestra to play it."
H.E. LuccockWhile there are exceptions, it really does take a team to carry out a vision. Such was the theme at the Final Black Belt Test Dry Run for Lim Kenpo Karate on Saturday, November 1st.
I wrote about the prior
Dry Run and remarked on how it was inspirational. Saturday’s event was even more so.
Kaju AZ students Cameron Corder and Thomas Maher were asked to participate and at the time, I did not understand exactly why Professor Lim did so. It was apparent as soon as the training started.
The workout was challenging to say the least. After a couple of hours of non-stop drills including pushups, springs, mountain climbers, kicks and so much more, you could see the physical and emotional pain on each face. In one case, I saw a teenage girl squat next to a younger student who was really trying to push through the pain…and literally pushed her up to complete the spring. She offered many words of encouragement and continued to help her physically until the next break. I saw this many times over throughout the day. It was inspirational on so many levels.
No one asked them to help their fellow students, they just did it. In my experience over the past 15 years in martial arts, I know this is a rare thing. Most schools encourage self-centered students by putting them on a pedestal or promoting them to black belt without possession of a black belt attitude. Ultimately, it not only hurts the student but the dojo as well. These schools aren’t families, just glorified gyms.
The participants were partnered during some of the exercises. One exercise required that they learn five things about their partner while running their self-defense. Another involved solving a problem together and then presenting their collective thoughts to the group.
Do you know five things about each person you train with? Do you know five things about your instructor? You should.
Sometimes we are so focused on getting to class on time, getting our material for our next promotion and then rushing out to move on to the next part of our day that we forget that we are a TEAM. We forget that although we are all at different levels, we are stronger as a TEAM. We forget that we will gain so much more…for our minds, bodies and spirits…if we work as a TEAM.
Cameron and Thomas certainly know each other. They train together regularly and really exemplify teamwork in and out of the dojo. Both of them train hard and never short-change the other by going too soft but exhibit self-control at all times. Both are willing the share their knowledge, not just with each other but also with everyone. Both show care and concern about their lives outside the dojo and their family members. At the recent Brick Breaking Event for MS, Cameron inspected each brick that Thomas was about to break. Thomas carefully set up the bricks that Cameron was planning to break. Each was standing close by during their breaks as a way of protection and concern. And each was the first person to high-five and extend congratulations.
Kaju AZ has never been nor never will be a school about individuals. It was never designed for selfish students. All of us are really working toward the same thing: Black Belt Excellence in every day in every way.
The people we train with should inspire us. They should support us. They should help us be better in all areas of our lives. Allowing them to practice techniques on us is just the beginning. Each student has so much to offer the entire group.
Being a Kaju AZ Black Belt is never going to be about having the hardest punches or the highest kicks. It is always going to be about a standard of performance of material and about becoming a better person through martial arts. A Black Belt has to be willing to be part of a team, at Kaju AZ, in our community, and in our world.
As we Train Strong to Remain Strong, remember that we are also One Team with One Dream.
Simou Jennifer Corder
"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity.... It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow."
