Finishing 2010 Being Truly Grateful

Thank you for a wonderful year at Kaju AZ! We grew and added to our Ohana, had many great experiences, learned and accepted challenges from our Instructors and shared memories to last a lifetime. Thank you to each and every one of you for enriching our lives and allowing us to share our passion for Kajukenbo. Here's to a healthy, happy and Kaju-filled 2011! As always, Train Strong to Remain Strong!
-- Sigung Kelly & Sifu Jennifer Corder

"Often when we practice being thankful, we go through the process of counting our blessings, acknowledging the wonderful people, things and places that make up our reality. While it is fine to be grateful for the good fortune we have accumulated, true thankfulness stems from a powerful comprehension of the gift of simply being alive, and when we feel it, we feel it regardless of our circumstances. In this deep state of gratitude, we recognize the purity of the experience of being, in and of itself, and our thankfulness is part and parcel of our awareness that we are one with this great mystery that is life.

It is difficult for most of us to access this level of consciousness as we are very caught up in the ups and downs of our individual experiences in the world. The thing to remember about the world, though, is that it ebbs and flows, expands and contracts, gives and takes, and is by its very nature somewhat unreliable. If we only feel gratitude when it serves our desires, this is not true thankfulness. No one is exempt from the twists and turns of fate, which may, at any time, take the possessions, situations, and people we love away from us. Ironically, it is sometimes this kind of loss that awakens us to a thankfulness that goes deeper than just being grateful when things go our way. Illness and near-miss accidents can also serve as wake-up calls to the deeper realization that we are truly lucky to be alive.

We do not have to wait to be shaken to experience this state of being truly thankful for our lives. Tuning in to our breath and making an effort to be fully present for a set period of time each day can do wonders for our ability to connect with true gratitude. We can also awaken ourselves with the intention to be more aware of the unconditional generosity of the life force that flows through us regardless of our circumstances."

SOURCE: Daily OM

The Final Word: Belly's full? Then quit your belly-aching!

The Final Word: Belly's full? Then quit your belly-aching!

We are a nation of complainers. You only have to stand in line a short time and you'll hear some jerk go on about his sad state of affairs.

It happened to me earlier this month. I was in a long line to pick up a rental car at the West Palm Beach Airport. It took about 45 minutes, and this guy was going on and on.

"Only two agents on duty!" he said to no one in particular. And then I realized the voice sounded familiar. It was mine.

I was embarrassed, so I gave myself a little pep talk, told myself there were far worse injustices being perpetrated around the world, and calmed myself down. I finally got my car and drove away.

But it's true. We all complain far too much.

I was reminded of this the other day when I listened to all those folks on that stranded cruise ship off the coast of Mexico. The ship had a fire and lost its power. No air conditioning. No hot water.

I thought as long as they could hold on to enough ice to chill those umbrella drinks, what's the problem? They even got Spam and Pop Tarts airlifted in. Who could ask for anything more?

But no. When the passengers finally got off they were using words like "nightmare" and "pure hell" to describe their experience.

Nightmare? Obviously that guy needs to travel in the Third World more. Or at least go to Walmart the morning after Thanksgiving. Now that's a nightmare.

Plus, most people in dire situations aren't offered a refund and a free cruise as these people were. They were also handed cocktail party banter for life.

Without getting all Hallmark on you, all of us should look around and appreciate what we have, especially with Thanksgiving just around the corner.

Millions aren't so lucky. The Haitians living in tents, for instance. The Afghan women whose lives truly are living hells. The homeless men on the corner, the ones we walk by every day.

Of course, those people weren't in my line for the rental car, so it's easy to lose perspective.

One guy with perhaps the clearest world view these days is Liu Wei, the 23-year-old from Beijing who just won the first season of China's Got Talent. He's the armless piano player who plays with his toes.

He makes me ashamed of my eight years of piano lessons after which I barely managed to eke out Für Elise. And I was doing it with two arms and 10 fingers. Talk about embarrassing.

"At least I have a pair of perfect legs," he remarked after winning.

I'll never complain again.

By Craig Wilson, Courtesy of USA Today

The Man Who Thinks He Can

If you think you are beaten, you are,
If you think you dare not, you don't.
If you like to win, but you think you can't,
It is almost certain you won't.

If you think you'll lose, you're lost,
For out in the world we find,
Success begins with a fellow's will.
It's all in the state of mind.

If you think you are outclassed, you are,
You've got to think high to rise,
You've got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.

Life's battles don't always go
To the stronger or faster man.
But soon or late the man who wins,
Is the man who THINKS HE CAN.

~ C. W. Longenecker ~

Service Pays Off Now and in the Future

Sigung and Sibak leave Wednesday evening for Philmont scout ranch in Cimarron, New Mexico. (They will be gone until July 14th.) Philmont is a great, often life-changing experience offered through the Boy Scouts of America, a fantastic organization. They will be hiking about 85 miles over 10 days and hopefully catch a lot of fish. On some days, they change elevation in a range of 5,000 feet. They will get rain, snow, heat, follow the strict rules of no-impact hiking, eat a lot of crackers and cheese and live within a bear triangle every night. There isn’t a television, Gameboy, Computer, Ipod, cell phone, bubba keg, modern plumbing or can of Axe in sight.

This will be the fifth time that Sigung has made this trip since 1999. (The pictures are from their 2008 Trek.) The hardest part is that he is totally cut off – no phones or email – and away from his businesses, family and passion of martial arts. He always misses Sisuk Cameron’s birthday during these trips, as July is the best month to go. The leaders pay their own way and usually miss at least two weeks of work. This is a trip, which often turns teenagers into men as they leave the world behind and get back to basic survival and beauty of the outdoors. It provides opportunities for the scouts to bond with their adult leaders and have mentoring relationships that last a lifetime. It’s quite a special event for all involved.

Sigung and I are often asked “Why they heck would do you do this? Why do you spend the money (it’s about $600 per person)? How can you sacrifice your work and family time?” The answer is simple: performing a service to others has huge payoffs, both immediate and in the future.

Service to others is so important and so often ignored as we focus on our own problems and ourselves in our daily lives. Sometimes it is so hard to think about someone else and their needs when ours seem so overwhelming. This is precisely the time that we must remember to help someone else! Nothing gives us better perspective, understanding and focus than service to others.

I am not saying that one must desert your family and head to the mountains of New Mexico! Little things have big payouts too! A helping hand pulling weeds, a meal for a busy family, hours of babysitting…these are simple things that that mean a lot to others. We receive the added benefit of feeling good about doing something good for others.

Kaju AZ would not be the awesome dojo that it is today without the helping hands of many people! Rides to and from the dojo, keeping the dojo neat and clean, teaching in class, picking up meals, polishing the floors, building our Gilbert school, our self-defense clinics and simply introducing your friends and families to Kaju AZ are all examples of service. Quite simply – there are too many to name! Know that all your efforts are so appreciated and more importantly, will continue to have an impact many years into the future for every single student.

Sigung and I are driven by the positive impact that martial arts has on people. We have the benefit of seeing it in our children who have been training for their entire lives. We know that each of you will see the same impact on your children and yourselves in the future!

For me, Philmont is a love-hate relationship. I hate the time Sigung is gone and the accompanying stresses, but I love the man/husband/father/instructor/leader that service has helped him become. I look forward to seeing my sons become the same service-oriented, patriotic, compassionate, hard working dedicated men.

Thank you for your continued service and support of Kaju AZ. Thank you for your understanding that things may be a little different while Sigung and Sibak are gone. We will maintain our schedules with all of our awesome instructors! As Sijo Emperado said, “In Ohana there is strength” and I am grateful for all the strength I see at Kaju AZ!

Sifu Jen

PS - The picture below is the 2008 Crew and they are standing on Mt. Baldy at an elevation of 12,441 ft.

Happy Birthday, Sijo Emperado!

Adriano D. Emperado was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, on June 16, 1926. He was born to Filipino-Hawaiian parents in the poor Palama section of Honolulu. Like a lot of poor areas, the Palama settlement was a violent place to live. Confrontations and fights were a daily occurrence. Because of this Emperado started his self defense training at the age of 8. At this time in his life both his father and uncle were professional boxers. His next training came at the age of 11 while he was living with his older brother in Kauai. There he learned the basic 12 strikes of Escrima. At age 14 he found himself back in his old Palama neighborhood. There he trained in judo under Sensei Taneo at the Palama Settlement Gym. A few years later at the age of 20 Emperado undertook the serious study of Kenpo taught by the legendary Professor William K.S. Chow. Professor Chow had been a student of Kenpo Jiu Jitsu instructor James Mitose, and also held a 5th degree black belt in judo. Emperado trained daily with Chow and soon became his first black belt. Emperado spent many years with Professor Chow becoming his Chief Instructor and attaining the rank of 5th degree black belt.

It was in 1947, while still training under Chow, that Mr. Emperado joined with 4 other black belts to develop a style of their own. These five called themselves the "Black Belt Society" The members were: Adriano Emperado - Kenpo, Peter Choo - Boxing/Tang Soo Do, Frank Ordonez - Jujitsu, Joe Hlock - Judo and Clarence Chang - Kung Fu. These men developed a new system that they named, Kajukenbo.

In 1950, after the other four founders went to war, Emperado started the first Kajukenbo school at the Palama Settlement Gym. At the Palama school students could train for $2.00 a month. The workouts that took place there are legendary for their brutality. Emperado has been quoted as saying that a workout wasn't over until there was blood on the floor. He went on to say "that you have to experience pain before you can give it. You have to know what your technique can do. We lost a lot of students in those days, but we also got a lot from other schools, including black belts. These students would look at what we were doing and realize that we had a no nonsense effective system".

Although he was very successful in the martial arts he never made a living at it. Because he taught at Y.M.C.A.'s and recreation centers he always kept his student fees low. A lot of Emperado's knowledge of street fighting came from his many years in law enforcement. He had spent 14 years as a harbor policeman for the Hawaii Department of a Transportation, and a year with the Hawaii Attorney General's Office. While with the Attorney General's Office he served as a body guard to the governor. He then entered the private sector as the security director for a large company. He worked in the corporate security field until he suffered a heart attack in 1982.

All of his life Emperado studied various martial arts. In his lifetime Emperado saw his Kajukenbo style grow into a major martial art that is practiced all across the United States and in several countries.

Sijo Adriano D. Emperado passed away peacefully in his sleep on April 4, 2009 at approximately 11:15 pm. He passed away on Maui, Hawaii the island that he loved and was home to him. While this was a great loss for everyone in Kajukenbo worldwide, we honor him daily by maintaining the hard-hitting style he created. Our students and our Ohana represent the best that Kajukenbo has to offer.

The Corder family was fortunate enough to spend time with Sijo on many occasions. We were able to spend time with him in Maui in July of 2008. We treasure these moments and appreciate all that Sijo has provided for us. We will continue to honor his legacy in all areas of our lives.

Happy Birthday, Sijo!

Land of the free because of the brave!

(Picture taken at USS Arizona Memorial, Oahu, Hawaii)


By Harvey Mackay

For some, Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer, a long holiday weekend to head to the beach or fire up the barbeque. I sincerely hope that Americans attach a deeper meaning to this unique holiday.

Lee Greenwood wrote a popular patriotic song a number of years ago with lyrics that are perfect for Memorial Day:

"And I'm proud to be an American,
where at least I know I'm free.
And I won't forget the men who died,
who gave that right to me."

Whenever I hear that song, I am reminded how fortunate we are to live in a country where we can live pretty much as we please, within the law, of course. We rarely stop to think about what we are allowed to say or do, or where we can go. We are free to make our own choices.

What does this have to do with a column about business? Plenty! Our whole democracy survives because we have brave men and women who fight to protect our way of life. What we have in America simply doesn't exist anywhere else in the world.

We all have the chance to study what interests us, work where we choose to work, take risks and fail and try again. We sell our products on the free market, hire from a well-educated and motivated workforce, grow our businesses without limits if we are successful, and make a fair profit. We go to sleep at night knowing the morning will bring another opportunity.

We owe our freedom to those who are willing to defend it.
As a businessman who has realized the American dream, I understand that the sacrifices of our valiant service people have enabled us to live free and pursue our opportunities. We take our liberty for granted, but as the saying goes, freedom isn't free. We owe such a great debt to those who have died wearing an American uniform, or lived to tell about it ... is one day a year enough?

Here's a brief history lesson about Memorial Day. In the 19th century, "Decoration Day" was started to encourage citizens to decorate the graves of soldiers who died in the Civil War. After World War I, the observance expanded to include ceremonies honoring those who died in all of America's wars. The holiday became Memorial Day in 1967.

Now, Memorial Day is celebrated on the last Monday in May. Touching and beautiful ceremonies are held at cemeteries across the country, and if you haven't ever attended one, I encourage you to go this year. I guarantee you'll come away with a new appreciation for the extraordinary efforts of our veterans, and the ultimate sacrifice of those who gave their lives for our country.
General George S. Patton offered his own perspective: "It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived."

Over 400,000 American soldiers and sailors died in World War II. Around 1,000 World War II veterans are dying each day. These are the unsung heroes who saw action in Europe, Asia and Africa, and then came home and got down to business. We know them as the "Greatest Generation" -- the men and women who took on big challenges and gave selflessly. Can we meet those standards?

I drive past Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis every time I go to the airport. The unending rows of white grave markers are a solemn reminder of the millions who have died for our country from the Revolutionary War to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

I wonder how many of us could survive boot camp, much less wartime conditions. My worst day at the office will never compare to what our veterans have endured.

We honor them for their commitment and service. We recognize their sacrifices, and their families' sacrifices, that allow us to go about our everyday activities. Even those of us who work seven days a week still go home at night, unlike those on long deployments overseas.

We shouldn't wait until Memorial Day to show our gratitude for our servicemen and women. Yes, I am an unashamed flag-waver. I like it here, and I am grateful to those who have made my freedoms possible.

Mackay's Moral: Show your true colors -- honor our veterans.

True Meaning of Ohana

The word “ohana” is part of of Hawaiian culture and means “family in an extended sense of the term including blood-related, adoptive or intentional. It emphasizes that family are bound together and members must cooperate and remember one another.”

At our school, Ohana has real meaning and we take it seriously.

When you join our family, we intend to take care of you – inside and outside the dojo. We intend to support and assist you in becoming a better human – in all areas of life, not just martial arts. It creates a richness and fullness of life. Most of the people we meet and train with we would have never have met without our shared Kaju AZ experience. Very few of us are blood related and yet we will go to all ends of the earth to help and love you. We are truly blessed to have this association.

It’s always inspirational to see a demonstration of the true meaning of ohana. Saturday, a group of Lim Kenpo Karate students were testing at their third (and final) testing event for the upcoming Black Belt event this weekend. As in our own Kaju AZ testing, the goal is always to push testers to their limits…not in a cruel way, although to outsiders it may seem that way...but to see what comes out of them when they are at their mental and physical limits.

It wasn’t just the testers that were “tested” on Saturday. There was a test of “Ohana strength” as well.



One of the testers was petite in stature and it was difficult for her to manage the 25 pound backpack that was required to be worn during the testing. Imagine the stress of remembering the material, preparing physically and emotionally and then having to add the extra weight! She was struggling. It was uplifting to see a member of her Ohana quietly and without reservation, holding the weight up behind her. Later, when she struggled to stand with the pack, several other Ohana members assisted her. There were other examples that day…a young student who forgot her material (who among us has never done that?) was assisted by a black belt who got out on the test floor and did the material with her. The testers represented a small number of the attendees – there were four times as many supporters observing, cheering and helping in any way possible.



True Ohana was there this weekend at the BJJ Tournament too. The cheering, the hugs, the encouragement, seeing your Ohana and instructors on your Team makes a difference in any one’s performance.

It’s easy to say we are part of an Ohana and tout the inherent benefits. Visitors to our school sense it the minute they walk in and many want to be a part of it immediately.

True Ohana members are often unsung heroes that support and sustain our endeavors to succeed. Being a true Ohana member is often not convenient, as each of us have busy lives. Being a true Ohana member involves sacrifice and pushing aside our own desires at times. It can involve giving up our precious free time (or birthday evening) to come and support a tester or our valuable resources to prepare a meal for the potluck.

I am big believer in that the more I give, the more I get. It’s simple to me and I want to give more than I take. I have been supported by more Ohana than I can begin to name throughout my life and martial arts experience. Sometimes it was cheering for me at a test. Or spending extra training time with me. Or having a great uki who helped me when I had nothing to give. Or an injured student coming to lend a hand where possible or support during a test. Or a short email commenting on a class I taught. Or a great job pat on the back. Or someone taking out the trash or asking what can be done around the dojo. The instances are numerous….and in all cases, I am always honored.

There is something so special, so unique, so wonderful about witnessing true Ohana in action. It inspires me to do more and be better. Kaju AZ has infinite possibilities of true Ohana each and every day…each and every class…each and every student. I challenge each of you to reach outside your comfort zone, look around and see what you can do to exemplify true Ohana.

Sifu Jennifer Corder

Happy New Year!

Kajukenbo Arizona is growing! We will be adding another location in Queen Creek/Gilbert in Spring of 2010. We will be offering Kajukenbo for ages 5 and older. If interested in getting on the mailing list for our Ohana and this location, please email sifu@kajuaz.com.

We will be starting a new Hula session for Halau o Kaju AZ soon! Our team will be performing soon so watch for details! Classes are taught by Sifu Dolly Abad. Please contact us if interested!

We are enrolling for all ages RIGHT now! Time to get in the best shape of your life! Contact us and take advantage of our "Try it for FREE" program!

Train Strong to Remain Strong!