Chinese New Years Banquet

Wow what a great evening last night!  Last night was the culmination of a whole year of training.  The whole school comes together on Chinese New Year to celebrate the past years accomplishments. It was truly inspiring to witness the promotions of both Sihing Czilag and Sihing Langer.  I have known both of these men for the better part of four years.  I have watched and helped them (in a very small way) on their journey to get their black belt.  I have seen the struggles both have gone through but they have persevered and got to where I want to be. It was very cool to see the current black belts get their next degrees.  Over the past year I have gotten to know them in a way that would have been impossible without the I Ho Chuan.  I have great respect for them and have developed great friendships because of the team.  So congrats to Sifu Tiffany Playter, Sifu Beckett, Sifu Wetter & Sifu Bryant.  You all are amazing people and we are so fortunate to have you as leaders within the school.

This year was the first year that I was very involved with the Chinese New Years dragon/lion dance as well as the demo and the black belt candidates performance.  It was a lot of hard work and a ton of commitment but it was so worth it.  In the past I helped out as much as I could with the set up and preparations of the banquet hall.  But this year was sooooooo much better.  Looking back only a couple of months I can clearly remember that we didn't have the dragon dance figured out.  In fact we didn't have a dragon dance at all.  In only two short months we pulled together the very best dance I think the school has ever done.  That is a testament to everyone who came out and committed to it. The demo looked AWESOME!  Everyone worked so hard on their piece and you could see that it paid off.  I think everyone that was watching the performances of all the demos could see the commitment that every student gave.  I was amazed at the skill of the younger kids classes.  I was watching them from the sidelines with other team members and we all were amazed at how good the kids skill level was.  You could see that the kids and the instructors really worked hard to get ready for last night and I must congratulate them all for an amazing performance.

Waking up and reflecting upon last night has motivated me and inspired me.  I am looking forward to the year of the Horse and spending a great year with some very amazing people.

Ian Repay
Student Of Silent River Kung Fu.
Stony Plain, Alberta, Canada