Pottery Goal - IHC Year of the Ox - Success

I am officially calling my pottery goal for the IHC Year of the Ox a success.

Did I make 4 matching coffee mugs?  Weeeeeeeeeeell...technically no....but I did make 2 sets of 4 "un-matching" coffee mugs....as well as many other pieces!!  Lol.

Even though I wasn't able to get anything matching, alot of different things resulted out of setting this goal.

I built my pottery shed and got my kiln set up.

I successfully calibrated and fired my kiln for the first time.

I learnt a bunch about clay bodies and glazes.

I learned how to glaze and layer.

I expanded to pinch pots and sculpting.

And I did make those mugs, matching or not.

And BAM!!!  A realization just slapped me in the face.

The more I think about this, the more I see that perhaps these specific requirements that we set aren't necessarily our true goals.  But instead, they are more often the means to reach our true goal.  If I had written "get back into pottery" as a goal, what would that have meant?  How would I have done that?  How would I have measured that?  How would I have known I had successfully reached my goal?  It would have been so abstract a goal that I likely would have failed.  So instead, I think I chose a specific task.  Something on which to focus.  A reason to get back on my wheel.  A reason to dust off my equipment.  A reason to learn and expand this skill.  A reason to get back to doing something that I love to do.

Making these coffee mugs wasn't the real goal.  It was the tool I needed to reach my real goal.

The real goal was re-igniting my passion for pottery.  And it worked.

5 Applications Training

I've been working with Ms. Kohut now for a few months.  

When she first approached me about being her partner for her 5 applications, I was a bit hesitant.  Not because I didn't want to do it.  Not because I wasn't completely floored and honored that she had thought of me...

I was hesitant because I didn't think I was the right choice.  I thought she was making a mistake by not choosing someone with more skill and experience and my immediate thoughts were,

I wasn't good enough,

I didn't deserve this opportunity,

She would regret her choice,

And I would ultimately fail her.

These thoughts haven't dissipated completely...but irrelevant of whether they have substance or not, I am so glad that I chose to put them aside and say yes.  Not only have I had the opportunity to get to know her better, but I've been so fortunate to have direct access to her skill and knowledge.  She is always very patient with my questions and is always willing to share her experiences, both good and bad.  All of this plus my break falls have improved tremendously.  

Moving forward, I am going to make every effort to grab hold of any opportunity that presents itself.  Sure, there may be occasions where there are valid reasons to decline...but I don't want them to ever be based on self doubt or fear of failure.

Knock On Wood

I have found myself in a really great place.  

I wouldn't necessarily describe everything as "super duper awesome", but I feel as though I've established some sort of sweet spot.  I still suck at a bunch of stuff...and don't really understand a bunch of stuff...but there are also many things that I'm really pleased with.  I feel like I've entered this really great phase of just slowly plugging away, bit by bit...just doing Kung Fu.  No feelings of pressure or anxiety.  No frustration really.  I know it doesn't really make sense, but I'm in a place where I'm not just finding myself pleased with the good stuff...but with all of it, as a whole.  I think I just got to a point where I was tired of struggling against the bad...where I no longer wanted the bad to overshadow the good.  But I also didn't want to turn a blind eye and was still determined to overcome my challenges as well.  And so I told myself to just embrace that I will always have both.  Always.  And that's how it should be.

Good and bad.  Yin and Yang.  One only exists because the other exists.  Both are necessary for harmony and balance.

I really hope I didn't just jinx this all by saying it out loud.

Fall Break Livestream Challenge

I’ve really been enjoying the livestream lesson challenge (thank you Ms Ward!).  And just my luck that a few of the lessons have covered Da Mu Hsing, my IHC form.

Watching these videos, I’ve been seeing so many things I don’t remember noticing previously. At the time they were released, I was more focussed on learning the form, rather than understanding the form.  I was more focussed on the basics, rather than the details.  Now that I’ve got a handle on the basics, these little details are jumping out at me from all over the place…and essentially slapping me in the face.  I couldn’t believe how much more I was seeing…how much more I was noticing.  And I often find this type of mental progression just as exciting, if not more so, than physical progress.

In any event, this certainly wasn’t what I expected from this challenge.  And I see great value in revisiting these lessons on a more regular basis.

I Know Nothing....and I'm Okay With That

Thrust punch....one of the most "basic" techniques that we learn right from the beginning of our training.

This is one of those things that, as a new martial artist, seems pretty simple in your mind.  It's something you tend to think you "get" right from the start.  I thought I got it.  I was so wrong.

As part of my fine tuning with Da Mu Hsing, I've been working on really establishing that last second rotation in my thrust punch.  I was playing around with some different things, when I realized that my other hand, the opposite, yet equal hand, was an issue.  I was incorporating it initially, but it almost "petered" out during that last portion of snapping it to my waist.  As if it became irrelevant...or forgotten...or that I was already moving on to the next move in my mind.  Maybe all of these.

Either way, when I started to truly focus on making sure I was snapping back to my waist just as intensely as I wanted to strike out...it became a moment where I suddenly realized that I have never actually thrown a true, proper thrust punch.  And the clouds parted and the angels sang.  Two years, and I just now have felt what a thrust punch is actually supposed to feel like.  I was excited and humbled all at once.

I love these kinds of "discoveries".  They are usually things that I've done over and over...and that I've received instruction on over and over...and I think "yes, I know this".  But then one day I actually FEEL it, and I realize I knew nothing....and I'm okay with that.  😂

IHC Number Update - November 3

 My November IHC Update

✅ = achieving/exceeding my numbers or generally on track where numbers don't really apply.  

❌ = behind on my numbers, things aren't going well or I haven't taken any steps to complete the goal yet.

➖ = unsure of progress, the opportunity hasn't presented itself yet, it may take the full year to properly evaluate, or it's something I would need my instructors to determine my success/failure.  I've decided to still list these things here just as a reminder that they are still requirements.

⭐ = Complete

Base Requirements

✅ Hand Form - Da Mu Hsing I-V  749/1000

✅ Knife Form - Goju-Shorei Talon  750/1000

✅ Push-ups  37,518/50,000

✅ Sit-ups  37,512/50,000

✅ Sparring  758/1000

✅ Kilometers 1409/1609

✅ Acts of Kindness 749/1000

✅ Blogging/Online Presence

✅ Unexcused Absences

➖ Mastery by Stewart Emery *not memorized yet but understood

✅ Mend a Relationship

➖ Lion Dancing

❌ Tiger Challenge

➖ Public Performances

➖ Core Curriculum - Instructors call

✅ SRKF Projects and Initiatives

Personal Requirements

✅ Weekly Dharma Talks - Back on track here.  I've revamped this a bit and have expanded to other speakers similar to Thich Nhat Hanh.

✅ Pottery - I've been spending consistent time with my pottery...which is always good for my mind and my spirit.  I'm waiting on some pieces to dry before I do another bisque fire.  I should have another full batch of glazed and finished pieces by the end of November.  Hopefully there will be 8 mugs that will have survived.  Although though 

✅ Box Jumps - I have been doing step ups or other exercise with my box every single day since October 7.  

⭐ Learn how to change my car tires  - Complete.

➖ Learn how to change Oil  - it's so cold out.

✅ Indoor Plant - I love all my plants.  It has become this perfect little space in my home.  I can't officially mark this as complete, since technically I need to keep these all alive for the full year, but it's looking like I'll be able to count this as a success.

❌ Save for Family Getaway - this keeps getting derailed with other needs in my house.

✅ Compliment Dan, Emma and Nathan at least once a day.

⭐ Children's book - Complete.

Sleepless Nights

I haven’t been sleeping well this past while, for various reasons. I was up last night at about midnight, last looked at my watch at 4:15am and then woke up to my 5:00am alarm. I could have forced myself to get up, but today, a little more sleep was more important. And so I missed my morning training for the second time in the last couple of weeks. Obviously, there are some things I need to address here, but there will always be these kinds of obstacles now and again. Knowing how to deal with them is the key to not letting them de-rail my efforts.

Although today won’t follow my ideal routine, I will still be able to get my reps in throughout the day at work. They will not be as mindful as usual, nor as intense…I’ll have to run through them a little faster, a little more compact, and I won’t be able to go too deep into my stances or techniques…but that’s okay. For today I need to adjust my mindset to simply maintain numbers. When my mind, my body and my physical space allows, I go as hard as I can. And that is often when some really great progress is made and insight is found. But there are also days where I just need to stay on top of my numbers and hammer out some reps. And even in these, there are benefits, if I pay attention and get creative. I will sometimes challenge myself to doing them fast, just to see how good I am getting at knowing the steps without having to think about them too much. I will face different directions to ensure that I’m not becoming too reliant on certain visual aids. I will also sometimes choose one “easier” thing to focus on, and slow things down just in those particular sections. And I won't lie...sometimes the rep might be completely mindless, but there is still success because I chose to do something, rather than nothing.

Sifu Brinker recently blogged about hoops versus tools.  Today's approach may look, to some, as though I am approaching my number requirement as a hoop. Something that I need to check off. But I disagree. Today's approach is about preventing it from BECOMING a hoop. Even though today will be more about maintaining numbers than making any great leaps and bounds with my progress...there will still be progress, just by the simple act of doing. The teams' number requirement has definitely been a tool for me. It's a reminder to take consistent action, in a measurable way, every single day. These small steps will then add up to great accomplishments...but only if I'm doing them. I refuse to let my numbers slide simply because I can't give 100% on a given day. Let's face it, there are many days when I can't give 100%...and that is no reason (or excuse) for me to do nothing. Maintaining those numbers, as a base requirement, is what keeps me going the next day, and the next. If I can keep up with my numbers, this requirement remains a tool that continues to provide benefits and will keep moving me forward. If I let those numbers slide, and I fall behind, I risk succumbing to the mindset of defeat and a "why bother?" attitude. And THAT is when it will become a hoop.

Full intensity and mindfulness are ideal, but just not always possible. First and foremost, I simply need to take some sort of action. Action is the first step. Getting those repetitions in, is the first step. The mindfulness, the insight, the intensity will always come…but not without action.

Some days, like today, are more about the numbers and not allowing myself to fall behind. And I’m happy with that goal for today and am confident it will serve me in the long run.

Something is ALWAYS better than nothing.