Today was the forms seminar, which I participated in as an
instructor, judge and commentator. Instructing
a form and passing down to another student what had been taught to me was a
rewarding experience, not to mention the review and form breakdown for four
hours...always a great way to see the micro steps and meaning to all that goes
into a form.
The forms seminar consisted of a room full of martial artists
who challenged and pushed themselves to be better at what they love. Throughout
this event I also faced challenges of growth and personal betterment through
the instructing, judging and feedback portion.
Instructing has an added benefit, which I never realized until
I started to assist as a Sihing. For me instructing turned out to be a way of
learning, it allowed me to see my form errors through others and also assisted
in translation. In translation, I refer to reading the students and their
mental and physical mechanics, in turn finding the most appropriate way to
instill me teachings. It wasn’t until
being a part of SRKF that I realized how much I enjoyed instructing and helping
others, so for me, being there today was a privilege.
Judging....this was the second most difficult challenge that
I put myself through today. I very much enjoyed it and felt more confident in
this position that I did in the past. The thing about judging that makes it a
challenge for me is that I play a part in a decision making process which places
values on the performance of others. The process is not a difficult one if you
understand the detail which you are seeking. However, for me when it comes to
martial arts, I see a very broad spectrum of characteristics which are to be
judged. Today may have been a “forms seminar”, but forms are not just about the
technique, they are about the personality that delivers them, they are about
translation, they are about heart and soul.
My first most difficult challenge today was giving feedback
to the form seminar students. It is always easy to give feedback on the positive,
but a bit more difficult to relay the things which require attention. When the
intent of the comments is perceived for what they were meant to be, which is
only for correction and the betterment of that which was be judged, then that
is great but if the translation goes bad then the intention has failed and
becomes very awkward.
During this seminar I saw and mentioned a couple things that
had an impact on me as a judge, nothing that would have altered a score
performance, but things that set the tone for me as a judge. What I mentioned was not directly about the
techniques but that which impacts them.
There are many things which can be taken home when studying
the martial arts, other than physical defence and offense. My interpretation is
that we are more about not fighting than fighting – we teach the children about
recognizing bullies and how to react against bullying without violence; we
teach respect and discipline; we teach honour and integrity; we teach honesty;
we teach the importance of punctuality; we work on building character and
responsible individuals; we focus on control and remaining calm through
everyday situations; we teach not to judge; we teach empathy; we invite and
participate in community activity and help people in need. The curriculum
enforces memorization and learning history. The school offers academic support,
through a scholarship program. This partial list of what I see as a big part of
our school is the building structure of our character; this is what will dictate
the rest. All of this to say, when there is evidence of extraordinary respect
and disciple and all the above it deserves recognition as does the rest our
training. I see such value in this because of what I see happening through a
good portion of the world today. The first step to change is within! I really
beat up the point that I wanted to get across with this post, but I see such
value in the mental building that takes place in our kwoon and wanted to make
mention of it today. I realize that it may have come at an awkward time, during
the “forms seminar”, but the relevance is very strong for me.
There are many interpretations of the martial arts and there
are many different journeys through the channels of martial arts. My journey is
my journey, I say that because it does something for me that is unique and
individual to just me.
One last thing, there were varying levels of participants at
the seminar today, all of which did very good. I know that there are some who were/are
disappointed in their final performances, but really shouldn’t be. This is an
event of growth, it is an event of challenge, which is not easy and isn't
intended to be. It can take its toll on your nerves and really mess with your
focus and mind control. For those of you that committed yourself to this event
I know that no matter what level you were at that there was an overwhelming
amount of information, some of you went through two new forms today. Hats off
to all of you! What you all experienced today is normal, the mind blocks and stammering
through the forms... all normal. The important thing to take home is that there
was a massive amount of growth in all of you....so much to be proud of.
Darcy Regier
http://darcyregier.blogspot.com/
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