Friday, February 27, 2009

How Are You Growing?

Spring is coming.

Flower buds are starting to come up through the soil. Soon, they'll be in bloom.

I once read that the biggest difference between a flower that's alive and a flower that is dead is that the flower that is alive is GROWING, and that the one that is dead isn't growing. Simple, no?

So, aside from the myriad details of your metabolism and the rate at which your skin cells get replaced each day, how are YOU growing — physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally?

We martial artists have a simple and accessible answer — theoretically, anyway: following the budo, we train constantly, so our physical bodies are always adapting and growing. For our mental growth, learning new techniques, memorizing the patterns of kata, or studying martial arts history or philosophy stimulates our minds and expands our knowledge. Our brains literally grow new connections to make sense of all the information we take in. Pushing outside of our comfort zones, and endeavoring to develop a warrior's mindset polishes and grows our spirit. By training with others, and by facing our own limitations again and again, we come to recognize and appreciate the fragility of the human condition. This fosters within us a sense of compassion. Our hearts grow.

But let us not limit our "growth" to what I affectionately call the "white pajama world" inside the walls of our dojo. If our budo training is going to mean anything in our everyday lives outside the training hall, then growth should happen outside the dojo, too. As my UBBT coach Tom Callos is fond of saying, "My life is my dojo."

What are you doing to grow physically between karate classes? Are you walking or jogging regularly? Stretching, or engaging in cross training — or some other form of exercise?

For your mental development (and balance), what books are you reading besides books on the marital arts? Are you involved in a non-martial hobby? Who are you hanging out with? Have you ever done a sudoku puzzle? (This last one is just an example ... I have never done sudoku. Tried it once. It hurt.)

Spiritually, do you regularly find time for meditation, silence, and stillness? A little quiet contemplation goes a long way: I recommend that you sit and ask yourself one big question a day: Who am I? Why am I here? Where did I come from? Where am I going? If the biggest question you ask yourself each day is something akin to "What am I going to have for lunch?" then I suggest that you have some work to do!

Here's a tough question: How do YOU grow your heart? Help others. Serve more. Listen more. Give a compliment. Withhold a criticism. Over-tip. Dance. Make that donation you've been putting off. Call your mom and thank her. Imagine. Better yet, play – and don't keep score.

And I want to be clear: my definition of "growth" goes beyond acquisition of talent, skill, stuff, or information. That's "getting," not "growing." To me, growing involves collection, absorption, study, embodiment, application, and opening yourself up to feedback. A growing flower does not measure itself against some flower standard of perfection, or against the flower next door. It just reaches toward the sun... and attracts the bee.

Growth (inside and outside of the dojo) requires curiosity, humility, desire, and maybe even a sense of adventure. And patience, too. Information absorbed becomes knowledge. Knowledge applied becomes power. Power shared becomes wisdom.

Or … something like that. Yikes... Perhaps I've started to babble a bit.

Enough reading — get out there and grow. Stretch. And don't forget to stop and smell the flowers every once in a while!

Friday, February 6, 2009

Don't Just Do Something, Sit There!

As part of my New Year's resolutions, I've taken up the study and practice of regular meditation. I'm serious this time — really! Accordingly, I went out back in January and dutifully purchased a few books and CDs on meditation — and I dove right in. [splash]


All the books on meditation come with some simple, basic instructions:

Step 1: Find a quiet place to sit.
Step 2: Sit comfortably but not rigid
Step 3: Pay attention to your breath, and let any distracting thoughts go without attachment
Step 4: Repeat — regularly!


After a month of mostly-steady practice, I thought I'd share some of my observations of the battle I've been waging inside my head:



  • Finding 10-15 minutes of peace and quiet each day is proving to be much harder than I thought it would be. I can't possibly be that busy, can I? Clearly my priorities are way out of whack! I got 10 minutes of meditation in today, only because I consciously decided to be 10 minutes late to work. And finding 20 minutes to sit there and do nothing? Ha!

  • Reading about meditation is not meditation.

  • Thinking about meditation is not meditation.

  • Trying to meditate is not the same thing as actually meditating.

  • Only meditating is meditating, and I'm finding that sitting there doing nothing is damn hard work. Is it possible that I can be beaten so handily by a tiny little cushion?

  • I'm my own worst enemy! Somehow, I've procrastinated, delayed, and otherwise avoided my meditating sessions by searching for all the perfect meditation equipment. Candles, incense, and soft music are nice, but not necessary. Neither are statues, gongs, or even a nice soft cushion for your butt.

  • And sitting with a comfortable posture? Impossible! I watch my daughter in amazement as she sits ramrod straight with the royal ease of Kuan Yin. Yeah, a few minutes of that and I'm more than a little uncomfortable. One more reason, my mind says, to give this whole thing up.

  • But I'm not giving up. No way: My mind has no idea how stubborn I am.