Language isn't just like magic, it is magic. Literature that mentions sorcery and such types of magic, which sound fantastic, moving things with your mind, everything in the harry potter series, has something in common. All the "magical" spells are based on words, spoken or not, in some type of language. Like sorcery, our words can used to move mountains, by a foreman convincing his men to shovel. Words can change another's perception of you, like shape shifting, and so on.
Superman, has superhuman strength, to do things that seem beyond the limits of normal humans. But with the right words, a leader can motivate a group of people to push beyond their own limitations and achieve greater things than they thought possible. Superman is but one person, a leader with the right words can help countless people achieve things they thought were impossible.
Just like magic, and anything in science fiction really, any power wielded can be used to create or destroy, heal or hurt, used for good or evil, and ultimately make the world better or worse. Our words are the same, as history is littered with people who have done things with their words that were great, and passed along ideas that save lives, make the world better; but then again, the opposite is also seen far more often than we'd like to admit.
I'm sure we can all remember at least one time, when we were feeling pretty low, and hopefully, at the time, someone had given you the right words that allowed you to overcome whatever negative situation it was. It's said that a picture is worth a thousand words, but I believe, there are times when no amount of pictures can replace the right words.
To be continued...
PS This is getting really long, but I have my topic outline here and I'm sticking to it. It'll all come back around to the book eventually. I think there should likely only be one more part left to this but the cookie will always crumble of it's own accord.
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Sunday, March 17, 2013
2013.03.17 First tangent - Part 1
Ok, this will be the book project, and the titles are going to be different, and I'll play with it to find something that works well, same goes for the body of the blog posts. :)
Before I dive into the specific book, I feel that today's post topic is the first but necessary detour on this journey of understanding.
Chances are, part of anyone's childhood included various superheroes, with various super powers, dreams and wishes to have these powers, and further day dreams about what you would do if you had them. Something very pervasive in our society today is that in order to achieve great things, you must also be special, super human, a god among men if you will. In any modern story, movies included, the hero always has a special origin story, of how this hero came to be superhuman in one way or another, but it comes with some weakness.
This is not fiction, I believe this is real, just not in the direct way that one might think. Suspend disbelief, and consider for a moment what a super power usually entails:
1) A feature, skill, ability, or strength, the hero possesses and relies upon to achieve the desired outcome, or another advantage that was thrust upon our hero at some point.
2) Some event that causes serious psychological damage, resulting in either and overwhelming drive to change society as they know it.
3) Their increased ability also comes with an inherent weakness that is occasionally taken advantage of by their opponents, and the hero always wins by using another strength to make up for their weakness.
Now if we keep these base parameters of super powers, and we ignore things like flying and shooting lasers out of our eyes, and other fantastic things, it should also be realised that it rarity is not a requirement to a super power. One such example would be telepathy. But what if we all had a power such as telepathy? What would you do differently if you had a superpower that was even more powerful than telepathy? Even Professor X could only use his ability within that time. Spock can only share his mind with someone who is next to him. What if you could do all that but go beyond time and space?
Because we can. Language allows us to communicate ideas with each other. Books allow us to hear what people hundreds of years ago had to say, how they think.
To be continued....
Before I dive into the specific book, I feel that today's post topic is the first but necessary detour on this journey of understanding.
Chances are, part of anyone's childhood included various superheroes, with various super powers, dreams and wishes to have these powers, and further day dreams about what you would do if you had them. Something very pervasive in our society today is that in order to achieve great things, you must also be special, super human, a god among men if you will. In any modern story, movies included, the hero always has a special origin story, of how this hero came to be superhuman in one way or another, but it comes with some weakness.
This is not fiction, I believe this is real, just not in the direct way that one might think. Suspend disbelief, and consider for a moment what a super power usually entails:
1) A feature, skill, ability, or strength, the hero possesses and relies upon to achieve the desired outcome, or another advantage that was thrust upon our hero at some point.
2) Some event that causes serious psychological damage, resulting in either and overwhelming drive to change society as they know it.
3) Their increased ability also comes with an inherent weakness that is occasionally taken advantage of by their opponents, and the hero always wins by using another strength to make up for their weakness.
Now if we keep these base parameters of super powers, and we ignore things like flying and shooting lasers out of our eyes, and other fantastic things, it should also be realised that it rarity is not a requirement to a super power. One such example would be telepathy. But what if we all had a power such as telepathy? What would you do differently if you had a superpower that was even more powerful than telepathy? Even Professor X could only use his ability within that time. Spock can only share his mind with someone who is next to him. What if you could do all that but go beyond time and space?
Because we can. Language allows us to communicate ideas with each other. Books allow us to hear what people hundreds of years ago had to say, how they think.
To be continued....
Captain's Blog, Stardate 2013.03.17, U.S.S. Enterprise - Inspiration and Shaking in your boots
This week, I'm not sure where I'm going with this blog post.
First, a quick blurb about my book project blog. It may be apparent, that a post has yet to be made about it. I see a huge draft copy that I'm still pounding through, because it's not done, it's not good enough, I don't find it perfect enough to post yet. I had a conversation with Sihing Langner the other evening after practice, and he reminded me that it's ok to be a work in progress. This seems rather simple, but for me, I find it's a lesson I learn over and over. It's always a work in progress. I am a work in progress, and that's ok; in fact, that's the way it should be. My Da Mu Hsing is a work in progress, Kempo too. I caught myself mentally berating myself because it's taking me longer than expected to learn Lau Gar, that my numbers are not where they are, that my Kwan Dao is not where I want to be, and so on. But today, I look at things, and I can say this: I achieved twice the amount this week that I did last week. I am not where I want to be, but I am getting there, and I think that has to be ok for now.
Right now, things are changing. I am changing them. A year ago, I decided to leave a career path that I put everything into for 5 years. That doesn't seem like a lot of time, but to me, it's over 25% of my time so far. At this point things are coming fast, coming at a blur, and I'm starting to shake a bit. My knees are knocking a little. My resolve is solid as it was, but the nervousness is still there. It was until this past week, someone I really look up to said to me "It's exciting, and it's supposed to be, because if it wasn't, life would be pretty boring. If you're uncomfortable, you're on the right track." - not verbatim, but close enough. As I move forward, I remember this, and with solid knees, I hope I am always this uncomfortable.
"Just show up" this is another nugget that has been given to me this past week. It was at that point that I made the connection, that perhaps the secret to kung fu is just that simple. Just like life and any other outcome we may be reaching for. Just keep showing up.
Somehow, sometimes, I forget the bottomless depth of inspiration around me. It's nothing new, not something we don't know, but it never fails to amaze me, that all we have to do is look around and find that we are surrounded by so many experts. In kung fu and otherwise.
I'm a work in progress, and I'm ok with that, because I'm surrounded by people who I can look up to and see how it's done.
First, a quick blurb about my book project blog. It may be apparent, that a post has yet to be made about it. I see a huge draft copy that I'm still pounding through, because it's not done, it's not good enough, I don't find it perfect enough to post yet. I had a conversation with Sihing Langner the other evening after practice, and he reminded me that it's ok to be a work in progress. This seems rather simple, but for me, I find it's a lesson I learn over and over. It's always a work in progress. I am a work in progress, and that's ok; in fact, that's the way it should be. My Da Mu Hsing is a work in progress, Kempo too. I caught myself mentally berating myself because it's taking me longer than expected to learn Lau Gar, that my numbers are not where they are, that my Kwan Dao is not where I want to be, and so on. But today, I look at things, and I can say this: I achieved twice the amount this week that I did last week. I am not where I want to be, but I am getting there, and I think that has to be ok for now.
Right now, things are changing. I am changing them. A year ago, I decided to leave a career path that I put everything into for 5 years. That doesn't seem like a lot of time, but to me, it's over 25% of my time so far. At this point things are coming fast, coming at a blur, and I'm starting to shake a bit. My knees are knocking a little. My resolve is solid as it was, but the nervousness is still there. It was until this past week, someone I really look up to said to me "It's exciting, and it's supposed to be, because if it wasn't, life would be pretty boring. If you're uncomfortable, you're on the right track." - not verbatim, but close enough. As I move forward, I remember this, and with solid knees, I hope I am always this uncomfortable.
"Just show up" this is another nugget that has been given to me this past week. It was at that point that I made the connection, that perhaps the secret to kung fu is just that simple. Just like life and any other outcome we may be reaching for. Just keep showing up.
Somehow, sometimes, I forget the bottomless depth of inspiration around me. It's nothing new, not something we don't know, but it never fails to amaze me, that all we have to do is look around and find that we are surrounded by so many experts. In kung fu and otherwise.
I'm a work in progress, and I'm ok with that, because I'm surrounded by people who I can look up to and see how it's done.
Monday, March 11, 2013
Captain's Blog, Stardate 2013.03.11, U.S.S. Enterprise - Inspiration and One day at a time
So we had our recent I Ho Chuan meeting this past saturday. When I left I had a lot on my mind, because I left that meeting feeling lighter on my feet than I have in weeks. As I heard about everyone else's progress and their stories, I found that I was not alone in my struggles, and although our stories were different, a lot of the core issues were the same. I found this extremely inspirational, and all I had to do was look around. So after I left I found renewed determination to pull myself up by my bootstraps and make sure that by the time the next meeting rolls around I will be better than I am today. Thank you everyone, for being the inspiration I needed.
So, if I do 180 push ups and sit ups and 60 pull ups a day, take sunday off, I should hit my required target. I hate to say it, but I haven't been hitting my numbers. So I have decided to take a new approach. I'm going to throw the numbers out of my brain window. Ignore them. Take this whole thing one day at a time. What is the difference between 180 and 300? 300 and 500? 500 and 1000? I think very little other than my mindset. Right now, I would be floored by the mere thought of doing 100 push ups in a set, which if I think about it, I could say the same about 40 rep sets about a year ago. So what I'm getting at is the following: picture the finish line 10m past where it is. In order to hit my numbers, I'm gonna forget about my average pace per day, what's left, and any analytics and thoughts about them. I'm going to think about only one thing, and that is to do more today than I did yesterday. Hopefully, this will allow me to think less and do more, just by keeping things simple. I'll keep ya posted.
PS I am behind on writing post 1 of the book project. I will rectify this asap. Sorry for the delay.
So, if I do 180 push ups and sit ups and 60 pull ups a day, take sunday off, I should hit my required target. I hate to say it, but I haven't been hitting my numbers. So I have decided to take a new approach. I'm going to throw the numbers out of my brain window. Ignore them. Take this whole thing one day at a time. What is the difference between 180 and 300? 300 and 500? 500 and 1000? I think very little other than my mindset. Right now, I would be floored by the mere thought of doing 100 push ups in a set, which if I think about it, I could say the same about 40 rep sets about a year ago. So what I'm getting at is the following: picture the finish line 10m past where it is. In order to hit my numbers, I'm gonna forget about my average pace per day, what's left, and any analytics and thoughts about them. I'm going to think about only one thing, and that is to do more today than I did yesterday. Hopefully, this will allow me to think less and do more, just by keeping things simple. I'll keep ya posted.
PS I am behind on writing post 1 of the book project. I will rectify this asap. Sorry for the delay.
Monday, March 4, 2013
Captain's Blog, Stardate 2013.03.04, U.S.S. Enterprise - Who are you reporting to?
I don't like blogging just to take up space and check it off the list. I find I feel like I've cheated. So there are numerous things every week that I could write about, but given that my priorities don't change very much, it feels like I've worn the same path over and over for a while now.
I did a dumb thing today. I was moving heavy things around the garage, and I didn't even stop to think that I was putting lots of power through my knee until it started tightening up. and some more. and some more. Now I am faced with a decision, what should I do next? This is the frustrating part. Do I ignore it and keep going, and show it who's boss? Or do I treat it gingerly and give it all the care I can think of? Is it at the point I think it is? Or is it something I can push through?
That last question is really sticky, because you're never sure if it's something you can't push through until it's far too late, and you've done a huge amount of avoidable damage. I don't know. I really don't.
I've been really frustrated with myself lately. For many things, and yet it comes down to the one root cause. But let's just say it's many little things.
So let me tell a story of what happened this past saturday night. It starts with me driving through the storm, and I see a car just off the road up ahead. It was snowing and such, so I pulled over and asked them if there was anything I could do to help. It was then that I recognized that one of the boys there. he was someone I went to school with briefly in the past. I will be brief and just say that my experience with him was rather unpleasant, and if my peers are to be taken at their word, I was not alone. So I proceeded to offer my assistance, pulling his car out of the ditch, being as polite as I have ever been.
Afterwards, I was a little unsettled. I had just spent the better part of an hour assisting a person whose interactions with myself in the past had been so negative. A small part of me was wondering why I did. Most of me knew there was a good reason, but I just couldn't put it into words yet. It was a little while after that the conclusion drawn was as follows: It doesn't matter who it was. At all. It never did.
Now here's where I bring this whole post together. I hope.
I didn't stop to help because I had seen who it was. I stopped out of habit. I do so, because I expect myself to behave a certain way. This is but one of things that result from the standards I set for myself. So it makes it important for me to see that I need to ignore who he was, other than just someone who's day I could make a tad better. It does not matter who it was, because I know that I would have done the same regardless of who it turned out to be, and that's the end of it.
Which leads me back to the title of this post. In each of the four almost unrelated things I have discussed so far, it all comes down to the same thing. Who am I reporting to? Who's rules am I breaking or following? Who puts an X on the things I've done wrong?
I think it should be my future self.
I did a dumb thing today. I was moving heavy things around the garage, and I didn't even stop to think that I was putting lots of power through my knee until it started tightening up. and some more. and some more. Now I am faced with a decision, what should I do next? This is the frustrating part. Do I ignore it and keep going, and show it who's boss? Or do I treat it gingerly and give it all the care I can think of? Is it at the point I think it is? Or is it something I can push through?
That last question is really sticky, because you're never sure if it's something you can't push through until it's far too late, and you've done a huge amount of avoidable damage. I don't know. I really don't.
I've been really frustrated with myself lately. For many things, and yet it comes down to the one root cause. But let's just say it's many little things.
So let me tell a story of what happened this past saturday night. It starts with me driving through the storm, and I see a car just off the road up ahead. It was snowing and such, so I pulled over and asked them if there was anything I could do to help. It was then that I recognized that one of the boys there. he was someone I went to school with briefly in the past. I will be brief and just say that my experience with him was rather unpleasant, and if my peers are to be taken at their word, I was not alone. So I proceeded to offer my assistance, pulling his car out of the ditch, being as polite as I have ever been.
Afterwards, I was a little unsettled. I had just spent the better part of an hour assisting a person whose interactions with myself in the past had been so negative. A small part of me was wondering why I did. Most of me knew there was a good reason, but I just couldn't put it into words yet. It was a little while after that the conclusion drawn was as follows: It doesn't matter who it was. At all. It never did.
Now here's where I bring this whole post together. I hope.
I didn't stop to help because I had seen who it was. I stopped out of habit. I do so, because I expect myself to behave a certain way. This is but one of things that result from the standards I set for myself. So it makes it important for me to see that I need to ignore who he was, other than just someone who's day I could make a tad better. It does not matter who it was, because I know that I would have done the same regardless of who it turned out to be, and that's the end of it.
Which leads me back to the title of this post. In each of the four almost unrelated things I have discussed so far, it all comes down to the same thing. Who am I reporting to? Who's rules am I breaking or following? Who puts an X on the things I've done wrong?
I think it should be my future self.
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