Opponent Within
I was teaching at a seminar a couple of weekends ago….After performing a joint lock, someone asked me, do you then break their arm with this? Without thinking I said "no, I would never break their arm. Why would I do that?".... then a long pause, ... "Sure maybe you could."
When we look at Hapkido from the outside, it’s easy to think it’s all about fighting. But, who is more deadly an opponent, the opponent out there…. or the opponent within here?
I heard a wonderful story recently. One of my students (a white belt) was walking down the street. This man started staring at him. He said my old self would have stared back, but since coming to Hapkido and Ki class I didn’t need to, instead I smiled and looked away. When he and his friends came out of the shop that same guy was on the other side of the street in a fight.
I think this white belt is already a successful warrior!
Have you noticed any changes in yourself since attending Hapkido and/or Ki class? I’d love to hear about them!
When we look at Hapkido from the outside, it’s easy to think it’s all about fighting. But, who is more deadly an opponent, the opponent out there…. or the opponent within here?
I heard a wonderful story recently. One of my students (a white belt) was walking down the street. This man started staring at him. He said my old self would have stared back, but since coming to Hapkido and Ki class I didn’t need to, instead I smiled and looked away. When he and his friends came out of the shop that same guy was on the other side of the street in a fight.
I think this white belt is already a successful warrior!
Have you noticed any changes in yourself since attending Hapkido and/or Ki class? I’d love to hear about them!
posted by Tammy Parlour at 4:21 AM
1 Comments:
Thoughts can be negative without being aggressive, and just as damaging. That was my opponent within.
I will always remember something my instructor said to me during my first month. I was making errors in my white belt skills and softly saying to myself, "that was dumb" or "stupid." Sir heard me and rather sharply reprimanded me because those statements were not allowed on the mat. I was surprised because I had never even considered that what I was saying was offensive.
Later that night, I started thinking that if Sir wouldn't allow me to think like that on the mat, that maybe it was wise for me to make the same rule for myself, no matter where I was. That was a huge first step towards me becoming confident and assertive, and those two characteristics alone have allowed me to drastically improve my life.
~Kimberly
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