Hi All,
I was home last week and was able to visit several of the kids and adult classes…lots of good stuff going on. I know we all have favorite instructors, but once in a while go to a class you don’t normally attend. You might be surprised at what you’ll learn. We are learning the greatest of the arts and we have the best instructors you’ll find anywhere. Take advantage of the collective knowledge we have at our disposal. Learn from each instructor; learn from each other and you’ll find a flood of knowledge and experience on which to draw. Think about it.
I was asked a couple of weeks ago how to deal with fear, the “deer in the headlights” response to a sudden aggression or attack. What would you do? I would breathe. Think about it. When we’re startled or scared, we inhale sharply (translates to a shallow, high inhale) and then we’re motionless, tension throughout our bodies. When that happens we’re not in control, fear is in control. Fear is an irrational emotion; if it’s in control then our response will be irrational and therefore ineffective. Nothing works until we breathe. Breathing allows us to think, to move, to relax, to counter attack…to be in control. Now that we’re in control, we can competently react to the threat and eliminate it by whatever means necessary. Breathing is critical to overcoming fear (we can’t eliminate it, but we can overcome it) as it is with so many other things we do. As in making the decision to survive, you also need to make a decision to breathe no matter what. You need to decide that you won’t freeze up; instead, you’ll breathe, relax, move and eliminate the threat…something to think about and to work on. Let me or your instructor know if you have any questions.
See you in class!
Master Robert.
