Mari Berbagi ilmu dengan MR.Alvin: Watching The Tide Rolling In.....

Watching The Tide Rolling In.....

The Sun is still there, it's just that the moon sometimes gets in the way...

There are times in life when I wonder if things will ever get better, or will they just keep rolling around in circles that give the impression of movement and progress, only to bring you right back to the same place your started. Take karate for example, for all the travelling and the techno-help you have these days, is the average karateka today better then their 1930's counterpart? How about you go further back, and compare today's karateka with the guys practicing karate in the early 1900's, of course, you don't have to stop there, you can travel as far back as you like.

The argument made by some for the need to keep a close eye on the past for fear of repeating the same mistakes could be, in it's self, the very mistake that keeps them returning to the place they were before. All that looking back might just be the very reason why they lost sight of the way ahead. In truth, the past is a place you can not go, and the future is a place you can only dream of...all you have ever had is now! So, what are you doing with your now? I'll tell you what I'm doing, I'm practicing the things I know and giving little thought to the universe of stuff that I don't. I'm engaging with the advancement of age, of dealing with life, and remaining content in a world that one could easily imagine, is full of enemies and danger.

So what exactly do I know? Well not much compared to a great many others it would seem. I know the stuff I've discovered about myself through practice, and because of that, I also understand I have some way to go to be as natural with my karate & kobudo as I would like to be. I know I would like to understand and live with 'balance' much better than I do. And I know that I have no desire to play a role in the global pantomime that blankets the karate/kobudo world right now. I also understand that regardless of being interpreted in some quarters as being shortsighted and overly opinionated, I know I'm not living a lie.

If indeed there is a 'journey' associated with the learning of karate/kobudo, then it has little to do with the external trappings of either art, nor the vast amount of knowledge so many seek to accumulate and carry with them along the way. The concept of 'enough' has long fallen from the minds of many who spend their lives searching for the next great revelation. Addicted to knowing more, they become slaves to 'progress' and in doing so continually redefine what progress is and how it's measured. In doing that, they find themselves repeating what others before them did...and so another circle closes and another one begins.

When you watch the tide role in, which wave do you think is the most important..?