Semester Is Over...1 of 20

This past weekend we had our finals in which we tested almost everything that we had been training since the start of the semester; Running up the mountain, Jumping, bridge hands reaction training, horizontal and vertical rope climbing, throwing cinderblocks, staff, pull ups, dips, TaiJi Quan form and applications, Jing and Chinese language. Its amazing, the progress we’ve all made since the start of the semester. Although I see areas where I can improve. Chinese is the greatest area for me that needs improvement.

During this semester I’ve learned a lot about myself. I’ve become more aware of my personal strengths and weaknesses. Areas that I hadn’t been aware of before coming to the mountain. Shifu has also done a lot to point out and remind me of what these weaknesses are. Meditation has been perhaps the most valuable in helping me to see myself as I am. I’ve become more aware of thoughts and emotions and the affect they have on my state of mind. Change is difficult…the first step is building awareness.
In light of my experiences here at the Retreat Center, I better understand the way in which the traditional arts help in building and refining character. Although I think the traditional martial arts are fundamentally for self defense…through proper training they have the power to transform people. That to me is spiritual and perhaps the greatest value of the traditional arts.