Martial Mashup Artistry

Here's a recent release from DJ Earworm, a mashup artist whom I really admire.

Before you watch it, a confession: as a quasi-amateur musician, I'll admit that most popular music makes my stomach retch, given the relative unoriginality and low level of technical prowess of the writing, performance, and overall message.....however, I still find Earworm's craft to be fascinating.

Some background: DJ Earworm (aka Jordan Roseman) is a San Francisco based artist who has grown to Internet fame through "mashups", a form of remixing which is essentially a cut/paste job on several songs to blend them into a new version.  It's possible because most popular music is constructed with similar mechanics and can be taken apart and reassembled, like audio Legos.  DJs do versions of this all the time, often by mixing 2-3 songs together for dance mixes and/or workout music.

Earworm is no typical DJ though.  He displays a mastery yet to be matched....even by other prominent mashup artists.

Since 2007, DJ Earworm has created a mix with the Top 25 Billboard songs from each year, synthesizing elements of all 25 songs into a single mashup that has its own sense of lyrical melody (and a different overall meaning from the original works), with accompanying clips from the music videos so you can see his work.  While I feel that the Billboard Top 25 doesn't necessarily have much high-quality material to work with, Earworm is a genius at weaving it all into an interesting musical tapestry that I wouldn't mind working out to.  His 2008 mashup is my personal favorite, followed closely by this 2010 mix.  (I also confess that I've rocked out to this in my car at least twice, thanks to the free MP3 download on his website.)

Listeners can enjoy it on multiple levels.  Casual listeners may be able to enjoy hearing the catchy, familiar beats because it's like hearing several songs at once (because it is).  Serious listeners can appreciate Earworm's technique (his formal training includes degrees in music and computer science) in the way that he painstakingly shifts pitches and matches tempo in order to smoothly fit everything together as he layers his music.  Earworm is no joke - he wrote the book on how to do mashups.....here's his table of contents.

He even manages to fit in some commentary about the overall theme and feel of the music that we gravitate towards each year, briefly connecting it with a general societal mood that reflects the times that we live in:

In 2010, pop has gone into serious all-out party mode. In 2009 the music was encouraging us to pick ourselves back up after being knocked down again, and to rock out to some great dance music while your at it. This year’s music tells us to keep going now that we’re up and having fun. In fact, the fun seems to be in such overdrive that it borders on recklessness. Usher urges us to "dance like it’s the last night of your life”, and Katy Perry wants us to “run away and don’t ever look back”. 

I've written about Earworm a couple of times in my UBBT blogs, but my reason for doing so hasn't been to talk about his music, as much as it has been about the way he performs his craft, and the way we perform ours.  You see, there are plenty of DJs who don't have a clue about music, mixing mediocre beats that play in thousands of nightclubs, simply by randomly cutting/pasting music without purpose, without meaning, often allowing their DJ software to do the work for them while they stand behind a mixing board and pretend to look cool spinning their iPod.

And as you begin to expose yourself to the many wonders and projects of the UBBT, you must also make a decision as to how seriously you want to pursue your craft.  You can glance at the work, infuse it into your school in a haphazard way, without knowing much, and wonder why the results are mediocre even though the idea is so well-executed elsewhere.

Or, like Earworm....you train yourself to become a master in the fields that you share with the world, and infuse your product (your teachings, your life) with the kind of masterful artistry that only you can create.

Choose well, and take action in the direction of your dreams, my friends.


P.S.  Hope all of you are healthy, happy, and living well.  The holidays have tied me up, but I have some great material in the works to share with you all!  I'll be in touch again soon.  Until then, have a Happy New Year! 

Putting Your Makeup Away Is Self-Defense

 
Ladies, do yourselves a favor and reduce your usage of cosmetics by 80% or more next year.  Help break the cycle and encourage other women to do the same.  Men, you can help too.

Consider for a moment:

Many women today began using cosmetics at a very young age.  They are taught from a very young age - through other women, TV, magazines, books, friends, family - that it somehow takes many steps to make your skin look 'normal' and/or 'beautiful'.  Part of the modern socialization process even includes 'reality shows' where everyone laughs and/or makes catty remarks at the 'ugly girl' for not doing her makeup right, until a professional comes in and remakes her image with cosmetics.

It's a form of manufactured demand, and it keeps makeup companies in business: convince young girls to coat their skin with excessive amounts of chemicals and by the time they're thirty, their skin will be so damaged that they'll feel like they have no choice but to cover up the blemishes.... and the more damage you've done, the more products will be necessary to make this possible so you can look "beautiful" again.

Ladies (and some of you guys out there):  every time you use makeup, your choices reinforce this industry.  You've become a passive salesperson for them.  Not only that, but it further reinforces a shallow, skin-deep view of beauty through our inconsistency.  We teach our daughters that their true beauty comes from within, but then teach them how to advertise the sight of their face and body first in order to attract attention, as if their character won't be noticed if the sight of them isn't immediately found desirable to the men around them.  (Watch Katie Makkai's "Pretty".)

Here's how you fight it:  start with the simple stuff.  You don't have to fight the industry - just manage from within.  Still, you can watch The Story of Cosmetics....great video.

Teach your daughters to look in the mirror and smile.

Teach them to communicate by looking a person in the eyes....and how to speak with their eyes.

If they want their face to glow, teach them to splash their face with cool water.  You'll never need blush again.

If a special occasion warrants a little extra dressing up, teach them how to get the most effect with the least product.

But then give them confidence - strength of character that is born through acquiring knowledge and sharing kindness thoughtfully with the world.  Compliment them on those qualities 10 times more often than you compliment their physical appearance.

Teach them how to bring forth their true radiance from within.

Thirteen Masters of Pain

I was searching for a quote to insert into my blog entry, which led to multiple other readings, and eventually I found myself learning through my searching far more than I was writing, so for this entry, instead of writing, I'd like to share some of the wisdom of thirteen masters of pain, an abbreviated tour, in the spirit of my own online searching:


"Pain is temporary.  It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place.  If I quit, however, it lasts forever." ~Lance Armstrong

"Boxing is about being hit more than it is about hitting, just as it is about feeling pain... more than it is about winning." ~Joyce Carol Oates

"Illness is the doctor to which we pay most heed; to kindness and knowledge, we make promises only; to pain, we obey." ~Marcel Proust 

"I assess the power of a will by how much resistance, pain, torture it endures and knows how to turn to its advantage." ~Friedrich Nietzsche 

"Waiting is painful.  Forgetting is painful.  But not knowing which to do is the worse kind of suffering." ~Paulo Coelho


"The smallest pain in our little finger gives us more concern than the destruction of millions of our fellow beings." ~William Hazlitt


"We must all suffer from one of two pains: the pain of discipline or the pain or regret.  The difference is discipline weighs ounces while regret weighs tons." ~Jim Rohn

"There are only three events in a man's life: birth, life, and death; he is not conscious when being born, he dies in pain, and he forgets to live." ~Jean de la Bruyere 


"Pain is no evil unless it conquers us." ~George Eliot


"Today, I choose life.  Every morning when I wake up, I can choose joy, happiness, negativity, pain... to feel the freedom that comes from being able to continue to make mistakes and choices - today I choose to feel life, not to deny my humanity, but embrace it." ~Kevyn Aucoin

"We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey." ~Kenji Miyazawa 


"Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding." ~Kahlil Gibran


"When thought becomes excessively painful, action is the finest remedy." ~Salman Rushdie

The quotes are not as important as the message that you draw from them. 

So what did you hear with your eyes? :)

Hard Work... Is Hard.

The thing about a hero is: even when it doesn't look like

there's a light at the end of the tunnel, he's going to keep digging,

going to keep trying to do right and make up for 

what's gone on before, just because that's who he is.

~Joss Whedon

To find any measure of lasting success or change, you will have to change your definition of "hard".

You're also going to have to adjust your attitude about hard work.

This change must happen regardless of where you live, how much you make, how bad the economy is, who's standing in your way, what's preventing you from succeeding, or any other excuse for failure.

For the vast majority of us, our lives, our jobs, our family situations, our circumstances - are not hard.  Our frustration makes it hard, perhaps our lack of knowledge or experience too.

Of course, getting the knowledge and experience to avoid that kind of frustration is going to have to come from - you guessed it - working hard.

I'm In Love With A Black Belt

I met my girlfriend, Jenn, 20 years ago while we were both training under KJN Ed Fong.

Let me rephrase that briefly.

I stumbled across the love of my life through a training accident while in the middle of a sparring class.  Stumbled, as in I walked into a brilliantly-timed side kick that knocked me back across the room and cracked a rib that's still sensitive even to this day.  It gave us a brief conversation, an "Are you okay?" moment, an icebreaker that I wouldn't have been able to manage otherwise because I was far too shy at the time.

From a certain point of view, it began because she left an impression on my heart that's never left me.

Our relationship was born amidst a lifestyle of learning to live and share the Martial Way.  As we grew together and it began to manifest in our lives, it also served to show me many of the things that I love most about her.  That's not because the training painted her into the person that she is, but because her heart has always been those colors.  The process of training simply helped two shy teenagers find the means to express the beauty of our souls and the insight to recognize it for what it is.

Through training, we've found our voice in the ways that we choose to serve the world.  It shows in different ways, and we don't always work on the same projects, but our support always shows through a deep mutual respect for the things that we choose to involve ourselves with.  That includes each other.

Our training in the arts dramatically enhanced the key lessons of the life training that we received from our families, transforming parental advice into a sense of purpose: make your life a constant process of personal evolution, striving to do whatever it takes in pursuit of what matters most.

We've also shown each other how we respond to challenges and problems.  Over two decades, we have both supported each other through numerous transitions: academic, professional, personal, family, political, philosophical, and far more.  Sometimes those things came packaged together with large quantities of confusion, frustrations, setbacks, and more - but we don't quit anything, especially us.

Our lives are not without challenge.  On the contrary, our lives test us severely at times, perhaps because, as author Paulo Coelho suggests, when you pursue your dreams as we do, life must test you in order to measure your readiness to realize those dreams.

Or perhaps, as our teachers in the arts have taught us: because living an authentic life is the test.

It is difficult to capture twenty years of this in a simple blog entry, but I hope that's a fair enough glimpse to connect you to what I'm getting at.  If you need to understand more, watch my life through a martial arts lens, a warrior's eyes - and beneath the surface of my actions and thoughts, in the place where I keep my innermost self, guarded within a deep reservoir of feeling, you will meet her, just as when you watch hers, you will find me.

I'm not saying this because I want you to begin dating out of your dojo - that's not the point.

I'm saying this because if you train to become the kind of person for somebody else that Jenn is to me (and never stop trying to improve that), then a life filled with love, laughter, friendship, and success isn't very hard to have....because when you bring light into another's life, they will light up yours.

Pointing at the Moon

"...the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them."

~John F. Kennedy

A true warrior has responsibilities that extend beyond his/her relationship with the Way.  Loyalty to the Way as a set of principles is noble, but it is merely smoke and mirrors unless that loyalty compels you to live by the same principles and not just possess the words. 

It is insufficient to know the path.  You must walk it.

I know this.  I acknowledge this.  I hold myself responsible for this.  As I reflect on each day, I find myself asking: "How is this related to the Way?  Have I acted in a way that brings me closer to my goals? How am I now better today than I was before?"

I am constantly self-evaluating, measuring whether what I said, wrote, thought, or did was "enough", whether I meet my own personal standards, and whether or not what I did could have been better or was as good as it could have been at that moment.  After reviewing, I immerse myself in setting new targets, creating new goals - always wanting to be better.

And then something happens.

Sometimes my screen lights up and a student is there, reaching out for guidance and I am needed...

Sometimes it's the brush of my dog's nose nuzzling against my calf, her sign of affection calling me to sit with her and be in a dog's world for a few minutes...

Sometimes it's the delicate touch of a hand on my shoulder and the sweet scent of my girlfriend's perfume, drawing me away from my self-imposed solitude and into a comforting embrace...

...all reminders that self-mastery is not about losing myself to myself.  That's a critical mistake.

I cannot ignore the present and the role that I play in it, nor can I allow myself to lapse into cycles of reflection and prediction that are unhealthy to the point of being afraid to act - a state of "paralysis by analysis".  I just need to trust who I am, then act in accordance with how I'd like to be.

Thinking about walking is overrated, much like obsessing about the Way.  Besides, even the first couplet of the Daodejing mentions: "The Dao that can be spoken is not the eternal Dao.  The name that can be named is not the eternal name."

The power of the Way comes from living it.

(P.S.  Happy belated 70th birthday Sijo Bruce Lee.)

Into the Abyss

 
"That place... is strong with the Dark Side of the Force.  A domain of evil it is.  In you must go."
"What's in there?"
"Only what you take with you."
~Yoda & Luke Skywalker, The Empire Strikes Back (1980)


Before I begin, I apologize upfront for being vague, but this one's pretty close to the chest - too close to blog about in a completely public fashion, although I've been talking with a few close friends.

During the coming weeks, I will be facing some steep personal challenges, issues that have been a part of my life for a long time.  I've been feeling somewhat anxious about this for a long time, so in a way, it will be good to confront it because the uncertainty (and, in some cases, the waiting) troubles me far more than any of the possible outcomes.

I have reminded myself how Coach Tom has described the UBBT process as being its own Hero's Journey - a reference to Joseph Campbell's book, The Hero With a Thousand Faces.

My own experience has been consistent with this. 

I remind myself of this when the anxiety strikes me.  During the course of my own UBBT journey, I have completed a long series of trials, with the support of close friends and teammates to lend me strength during the times that I have been tempted to stray from the course. 

Every victory has yielded valuable lessons.  I have grown.

I am not the same person that I was when I first embarked on this path, but I also recognize that right now, I'm not fully prepared for this one.  I've needed to do it for a long time though.  Even though my journey is far from over, I sense that it is time for me to take action now. 

Like my good friend Luke Skywalker, I must venture into this cave alone.  Unlike him, I don't have a lightsaber to bring along with me, which might play out to my advantage.  I kinda want one, though.

Wish me luck, friends.

Find Simplicity

 
In the spirit of simplicity, this blog post will be short and sweet.

I'm sitting in my comfy computer chair with a tall, cool glass of ice water.  Two dogs are nestled at my feet, fading into dreamland.  My window is open.  The breeze feels good.

There is much to do, but that's not important now.  I feel content in this moment, neither needing nor wanting anything more.  Well, the laptop can go.  Soon enough.

Check that thought.  The moment is here.  Now is good.  Off to enjoy simple pleasures. :)

Carl Sagan Day

Today is the second observance of Carl Sagan Day, in honor of the famous scientist's life, work, and legacy.  His messages, such as this one, connected us all to a great perspective and mission.

RIP Mr. Sagan.

A Rant on Education, With Purpose

Caution: super-long post, aimed in part at protecting many of our children from their own education.

The world of public education is abuzz with talk of improving student achievement. Faced with the disheartening statistics illustrating the decline of the American school system in comparison to other industrialized nations (along with a continuous series of budget cuts, among other issues), many educators are faced with the challenge of maintaining and/or increasing the level of rigor in their classrooms in order to keep up with the demands of a 21st century world - a world which will require its citizens to be able to adapt quickly and work together to solve problems (new and old) and work with technologies that haven't yet been invented.

According to a recent 2010 report by the Partnership for a 21st Century Education entitled, "Up To The Challenge", there are three primary developments which will make it possible to increase student outcomes that match the needs of their postsecondary, business, and civic lives:

1.  Consensus that the foundation of academic knowledge required for postsecondary education is virtually the same, with growing recognition that the academic skills, and employablity and technical knowledge and skills, are essential as well;

2.  Widespread agreement that lifelong learning and "learning how to learn" are key drivers of success in college, careers, and civic life; and

3.  Collaborative efforts in states, districts, and communities to strengthen their collective capacity to deliver results that matter.


To some, this may appear to be a blend of jargon from the education industry and the corporate world, so please pardon me while I translate each one briefly, and then comment on them:

1.  Obsessing over academic standards in schools is like training a soccer team whose main goal is being able to move their legs in a way that looks like running.  Yes, running is important for soccer, but it's not the only thing.


If I were to list all of the anatomical, neurological, and physiological elements of a running stride in a painstakingly-outlined sequence and then require coaches to test their athletes on these things as a measurement of athletic ability INSTEAD of (or even "in addition to") requiring them to play well, every sports team in the country would be bogged down with needless crap instead of being able to train.  Even the teams whose running scores outperformed all the other teams would still suffer in terms of their overall ability to compete on a global level because of the disproportionate amount of time focusing on the fundamentals and not the applications.

Our teachers managed to get us what we needed to get into college without the need for endless bureaucracy.  Some of us even feel like we made it, despite many of our teachers. ;)

It's time we trusted the teachers again.  The outline of standards is a guide, not a cut-and-dry recipe for academic success.  Give your tour guides a chance to make the trip interesting and meaningful.


Let's move on:

2.  Learning is a part of life, even after you're done with school, so you'd better be good at it.

It's unfortunate that a love of learning isn't necessarily synonymous with a love of schooling.  Perhaps that suggests something about our schools....or about ourselves, perhaps both.


Maybe #2 was self-explanatory.  Onward:

3.  We all need to work together on things that make a difference.

At its pinnacle, education does more than distribute knowledge.  It transforms behavior.

Transformational learning came into the educational landscape in 1978 with the work of Jack Mezirow, who wrote about a different level of learning experience - the kind of learning experiences which produce enough of an impact to create a "paradigm shift" that affects future behaviors.

The connection is almost too simple.  If you want to make a difference in the world, you make a difference in another's life...yet education doesn't necessarily promote this level of learning - not in an environment where the measurement and evaluation of foundational learning is prized as the "coin of the realm", while the "immeasurable" task of serving the community and fostering a sense of civic duty and positive contribution is lumped into the category of "community service" and seen as a chore.

Why is transformation such an important goal for learning?  It gives purpose to learning, purpose which runs deeper than passing a test and making a grade.  Connect that purpose to other forms of learning and you unlock a deep sense of motivation to learn!


Bringing it all back now....since this post is technically a UBBT journal for me also, I want to highlight how the curriculum objectives of the UBBT (and the Live Like a Champion Project) contribute towards the 3 developments suggested by the Partnership for 21st Century Education:

1.  The UBBT is flexible in pushing its participants to become well-rounded master teachers.  Instructors who haven't opened a book since high school are encouraged to wrap their minds around great thinkers and put their ideas into action creatively, not by copying a step-by-step lab procedure because social change isn't simply a matter of following a recipe.  Others who have the knowledge, but have lost the ability to apply themselves enough to jog more than a couple of laps around the track, are tasked with achieving functional mastery - not just the ability to eat, sleep, run, punch, kick, and choke....but to be masterful in doing it!  We must unite theory with reality.

2.  The UBBT returns its participants to the model of continuous, lifelong improvement and refinement.  Gone are the days where we could believe we've "been there, done that" and then parrot orders at the front of the class....that was probably never in line with our ideals to begin with.  The master becomes the student once again, because "master teacher", "master practitioner", and "master student" are the same path.

3.  UBBT members take their practice "out of the dojo and into the world".  While educators might be trapped in the idea that service projects aren't quantifiable (because they've only recently begun to use fancy statistics to track the most elementary levels of subject area knowledge), UBBT students are expected to document 1000 acts of kindness (large or small), mend 3 relationships (talk about socioemotional learning), spend a full day simulating various forms of disability in order to have first-hand experience growing in their sense of empathy for others, and much more - watch what they're planning to do in Alabama next April (have you donated yet?).

What will someone learn from these experiences - will the lessons be consistent?

To the rigid educator, no.  The results will be highly subjective, difficult to track, and unable to replicate with any reliable degree of consistency.

To the educational activist, yes it is consistent because all of those unmeasurable activities produce results that matter.  Unlock a sense of purpose in a student....watch what they achieve.

You want to improve schools and communities?  Have them all do the UBBT.

Keeping it Real

In the big picture, intentions are nearly as valuable as results....perhaps even more.

In my daily work with teens, I often encounter minor confrontations when my insistence on following directions is challenged with empty motion, devoid of intention.  A message like "read this story", to a disengaged student, can become "stare at the page and think of something else while my eyes glaze over the words".

When I call them on it, the argument from my misguided students usually sounds like: "What's the difference?  It's getting done, right?"  Done?  Perhaps.  That's arguable.  It's not authentic though....it's not real.

The difference, subtle as it may be (by their perceptions), means EVERYTHING.

In our world, there is training, and there is TRAINING.  You could train for a year and still be just as terrible at the end as you were when the year began unless you really TRAINED with the intention of operating at level 10, of setting a personal best, or of (insert your metaphor for all-out performance here).

What's the difference?  Well, for us, it's the gap between where we began and where we are going.  I hope that, after nearly a year, you are finding yourself to be in a different place than where you began.

If not, there's still time. 

Keep it real, my friends.  That intention will drive you to create results. :)

Self-Defense Against An Overwhelming Life

I have a lot on my plate today.  If I didn't know better, I might feel overwhelmed right now.

Truth is, a part of me does feel that way and I thought that my own process of refocusing my head would be worth sharing, as I often have conversations with students, co-workers, and relatives who are similarly overwhelmed with the circumstances of their own life, so I thought I'd think out loud here.

5:00pm.  Six more hours before bedtime, if I'm lucky.  In that time, there's a lot to be done.

First, before you go any further: stop and be still, Garcia.  Have a cup of tea and refocus.  You're no good to anyone if your mind is on a faster spin cycle than your laundry machine. (Crap, the laundry.... *facepalm*)

But I don't have time....

Fifteen minutes is a minimal loss.  45 minutes of focused time-on-task will outperform an hour's worth of frazzled, panicky work.  Just do it.  Drink some tea and check your Facebook.

Hey, this might make for a good UBBT entry - save that thought.

How am I possibly going to get all of this done in time?

Maybe you will, maybe you won't.  It definitely won't if you just sit there and freak out.

So what do I do?

One thing at a time, as you always do.  Your work requires you to focus.  You're not fighting a 5-on-1 sparring match.  That's different.  The multitasking you can do is for mindless tasks, like drinking tea while you check your Facebook.  With real work, multitasking might be handling other business while the copy machine prints for you, or some simple thing like that.  However, that's not what you do - so start with one thing, finish it, move to the next.

Time's up.  Focus.  45 minutes of focused work.  You've got this, Black Belt.  Handle it.

Okay, it's go time!  What's first?

Oh yeah, that blog entry - ten minutes.  Type it, post it, move on.  Go.

Where The Path May Lead

In life, Man commits himself, draws a portrait - and there is nothing of Him except that portrait.
~Jean-Paul Sartre, Existentialism is a Humanism

I find myself in need of a larger canvas these days.

When I first viewed the UBBT, my thoughts were to myself.
When I first began the UBBT, my thoughts were of my students.
As I progressed along my UBBT journey, my thoughts went to my school.
As I developed my school through the UBBT, my thoughts moved to the community.

That vision is growing larger, and as I expand into it, I find myself needing to sharpen my sword on all other fronts to prepare myself for the next step.

After some time in Hilo, Hawaii with Coach Tom, along with some conference calls with our teammate Kanentokon Hemlock, I've refocused my sights on locating, recruiting, and supporting other school-based programs like Kanentokon's in Kahnawake, and my own in San Jose.  The kind of work we've been doing here is not only a different kind of dialogue for the martial arts community - it's been a much-needed missing link in the world of public education, which could use a similar revolution.

This project excites me because it holds the potential to unite two major parts of my life which, until now, have remained largely separate.  I really don't know where this is going to lead, but I see a lot of room for growth here, so together, we're going to take some bold steps in beginning something new.

It's time to visualize, mobilize, and actualize!  Stay tuned, awesomeness is coming.

The Case for Competition

It is my contention that the idea of competition has deviated from its original meaning. 

Had our concept of the word been in line with its original meaning, there would be far less of a negative connotation associated with the word.  As it stands right now, the word refers to rivalry and contests between people, functions which help some people to rise, while others fall.

To some, this is not a healthy thing.  It is not the model by which a teacher builds people, creates connections, and heals communities.  In this mindset, competition is damaging because it is a means to separate people, whether actively or passively.

This couldn't be farther from its true meaning.

The word compete comes from the Latin competere, which can be divided into two parts: com- (with), and -petere (to strive).

To compete, in the classical sense, is literally "to strive with" someone else, a process by which everyone involved is expected to give their absolute best.  In that kind of a relationship, there is no surrendering to mediocrity, no voluntarily deciding to be any less than your best self (and you can always be better!), no walking away from opportunities for growth, and no abandonment of the support team that is "competing" with you....in the sense that they are right there with you, striving to be at their best.

That's the kind of competition that we do. 

That's the only competition that really matters.

Let the games continue. :)

Coastal Cleanup Day 2010

On September 25, 2010, Epic Martial Arts students, together with members of the LPS San Jose community, joined forces with thousands of volunteers worldwide in support of International Coastal Cleanup Day. Our team assisted with local efforts at Hellyer County Park.

Be The Candle

I cannot rave enough about the writings of Matthew Woodring Stover.  He's a contemporary sci-fi/fantasy writer, best known for his Blade of Tyshalle series and his most recent work penning a few Star Wars novels that threw fans for a loop.  In the novelization for Revenge of the Sith (arguably, in my opinion, one of the greatest film novelizations of all time...infinitely better than the movie itself), Stover wrote this beautiful piece on the nature of darkness and light, which appears in portions during the book as the story plunges into darkness:

(Warning: long post, but worth it!)

The dark is generous.

Its first gift is concealment: our true faces lie in the dark beneath our skins, our true hearts remain shadowed deeper still.  But the greatest concealment lies not in protecting our secret truths, but in hiding from the truths of others.

The dark protects us from what we dare not know.

Its second gift is comforting illusion: the ease of gentle dreams in night's embrace, the beauty that imagination brings to what would repel in the day's harsh light.  But the greatest of its comforts is the illusion that dark is temporary: that every night brings a new day.  Because it's the day that's temporary.  

Day is the illusion.

Its third gift is the light itself: as days are defined by the nights that divide them, as stars are defined by the infinite black through which they wheel, the dark embraces the light, and brings it forth from the center of its own self.

With each victory of the light, it is the dark that wins.

***

The dark is generous, and it is patient.

It is the dark that seeds cruelty into justice, that drips contempt into compassion, that poisons love with grains of doubt.

The dark can be patient, because the slightest drop of rain will cause those seeds to sprout.

The rain will come, and the seeds will sprout, for the dark is the soil in which they grow, and it is the clouds above them, and it waits behind the star that gives them light.

The dark's patience is infinite.

Eventually, even stars burn out.

***

The dark is generous, and it is patient, and it always wins.

It always wins because it is everywhere.

It is in the wood that burns in your hearth, and in the kettle on the fire; it is under your chair and under your table and under the sheets on your bed.  Walk in the midday sun, and the dark is with you, attached to the soles of your feet.

The brightest light casts the darkest shadow.

***

The dark is generous and it is patient and it always wins - but in the heart of its strength lies its weakness: one lone candle is enough to hold it back.

Love is more than a candle.

Love can ignite the stars.


Today, I watched a young woman feel the weight of the world on her shoulders, having witnessed firsthand how much darkness many people carry within them.  Those who dwell in that much darkness would sooner extinguish a flame because the sight of a light burns their eyes.  For them, it is more comfortable to remain in the dark than to walk in the light.

It is easier to embrace the darkness.  Sooner or later, you will always be right.

It takes courage to walk in the light: the courage to be wrong, to misstep, to risk and lose.

It is never the easier path, but no matter how temporary the successes may be, no matter how much the odds are against you, and no matter how many stand with you, it is worth the effort to hold up a candle to the night.

Even in the darkest of nights, find the courage and the strength to be the candle that lights the world.

Designed to Fail

"We have designed our civilization based on science and technology, and at the same time, arranged things so that almost no one understands anything at all about science and technology.  This is a clear prescription for disaster." ~Carl Sagan

The martial arts community is, in many ways, a microcosm of the larger world community, and if Carl Sagan's words hold any validity about the foundations of modern civilization, then when applied on a smaller scale to our domain, it is quite possible that a large (and growing) part of the martial arts world is also on the road towards disaster.

Why?  Well, we have constructed our systems, styles, schools, programs, and livelihoods based on indoctrinated concepts of self-defense, warriorship, martial virtues, and a long list of other ideals....and yet even among the population of master-ranked practitioners in our own spheres, very few understand, profess, or practice much (if anything) that is either practical or useful about self-defense and the aforementioned long list of ideals!  (When I say that, I include myself in this category, although I've probably always been here, and have been striving to transcend my ignorance for the duration of my career.)

The road to disaster is paved with the denial of our own ignorance.  Just like an apathetic teenager who doesn't see the need to understand physics even after their first auto accident, way too many of us in the martial arts world suffer from a mental disease that produces delusions of our own effectiveness.  Those delusions may lead us to design paths which ultimately lead to failure....sometimes for us, more often for our students, always with saddening results.

Sometimes I fall prey to this.  There are times when I intentionally try to sound like a know-it-all, especially with my students, because sometimes when a leader exudes the illusion of confidence, it provides reassurance to those under their care.  It is also true that leaders often must be willing to take the initiative and serve as a guide, even when the path ahead is unclear or uncertain.  In such cases, confidence is necessary.

Yet underneath it all, we cannot let go of the quest for knowledge, which begins in the ever-present awareness of our own ignorance.  Once we feel like we "know", a sense of complacency sets in.  We think and act differently because we believe we've found something, so we no longer have to be the seeker.  Be a Socrates.  Keep searching!

And yet, I do know something.  While that may be true, that never relieves me of my obligation to improve.

Less QQ, More Pew Pew

On any given day, were I to unfilter my Facebook newsfeed (gah), I'd see an ever-renewing cycle of despair scroll down the front of my screen, or 'qq', as my gamer friends might call it - a reference to the resemblance between a pair of lowercase Q's and a pair of crying eyes.  (I guess qq was easier than qp...but I digress.)

There's a lot of qq out there.

If you're in a semi-populated area, chances are that you are bound to encounter people who bemoan the circumstances of their lives.  They are in your workplaces, at your schools, at the supermarket, in line at the coffee shop, on the road, sometimes at home (hopefully not), throughout your neighborhood, and many more online.  Our social media tools, in addition to all of their perks, also seem to have brought us ever-so-closer to the collective despair of our friends all over the planet.

I'm not saying that we shouldn't ever complain, and yet I am.  Just catch yourself in your mind before you vocalize it.  When you feel like complaining, it's usually a sign that action needs to be taken.  Whether that action involves starting a task, finishing a project, adjusting a perspective, or whatever...if you're uncomfortable enough in your life to want to say something about it, then you're also near to the point where you're ready to do something about it.

We all have our ups and downs, but if you're down, then get back into the fight, guns blazing with the 'pew pew' sound that your children's video games make, because maybe our kids' games have something to teach us after all: that getting to the next level isn't possible without playing the game.

Less qq, more pew pew, my friends.  Stay in the game.

You Can Always Do Better

You can always do better than you think you can.

This is the essence of kaizen, the spirit of constant and never-ending improvement. 

Random bursts of benevolence from the Universe and other lucky surprises aside, in order for improvement to be possible, you must adopt an attitude that opens the doorway for the changes to take place. Without it, improvement is not possible through a failure of your own design.

Luke: "I....I don't believe it."

Yoda: "That is why you fail."

~The Empire Strikes Back

If you are convinced of your failure and mediocrity, there is very little that I (or anyone) can do or say to help.  Only when you break free from your own chains will you find a way out, but if that's you, then you are your own jailer, and you're holding the keys.  Don't learn to love your prison.  Free yourself, and in doing so, unlock your potential to become more.

To improve and accomplish great things, surround yourself with success.  Fill your life with people who have already done it and those who are passionately engaged in the process of doing it.  Create a goal-working atmosphere in which the things that you have not yet accomplished are not only possible, but imminent because you've planned a pathway that leads to success.

Believe that you can do better.

Believe that you can lose another pound.

Believe you can do one more push-up.

Believe you have fifteen minutes to read.

Believe in giving one more chance.

Believe in starting again.

Some Ramblings On Loyalty

Daniel: My karate comes from you.
Miyagi: Only root karate come from Miyagi.  Just like bonsai choose own way to grow because root strong, you choose own way do karate same reason.
Daniel: But I do it your way.
Miyagi: Hai.  One day, you do own way.
~The Karate Kid, Part III

Six months before I earned my 1st Dan under Master Ed Fong, I had the privilege of watching several friends test for theirs.  Towards the end of their test, the candidates were asked to form a circle and kneel, and the judges and visiting instructors had an opportunity to address the class.  One of the judges, a visiting instructor from New Zealand, began his remarks thusly: "Two years from now, only one of you will still be standing here.  Two at most."

His remarks were intended to talk about life's journey and how it sometimes carries us away from the dojang, and about the arduous, but worthwhile path that lay ahead for the black belts who stayed true to their training and continued to climb up the mountain towards their 2nd Dan, regardless of where life may lead or how long it may take.  Yet, as I listened, I couldn't help but feel slightly offended.  It felt like he was already speaking to them as if most of them had already quit.  Was this a challenge of our loyalty to our teacher?  The nerve!

Half a year later, I stood next to four of my best friends and training partners through our test.  While the test most certainly is and always will be one of the peak experiences of my life, I couldn't help but notice that one member of the previous class of four was already gone.  In fact, eighteen months later - two years after I had heard that unnerving proclamation, only one of them remained.

When I tested for my 2nd Dan, my own class of five had become a class of two.  I remember that it struck me as eerie to think that the visitor's prediction had come true.  I spent a lot of time trying to rationalize why.  At 16, I thought I had a lot of things figured out (ha!), but that one had eluded me since, of course, there are many reasons why a person might choose to take their life's direction along another path.

The martial artist's path is not an easy one to follow, yet when our lessons take root, the product is not intended to be students who are subservient human beings.  Our lessons build self-actualized people, capable of facing the challenges of their own lives and assisting others with theirs.  Some will follow in our footsteps, but the vast majority of them will (hopefully) become better citizens of the world in their own way.

Jump ahead some years, and now I'm raising my own humble (but growing) martial arts family.  I've 'moved out of the house', in a manner of speaking, but I know where my home is and where my roots are.  My teacher's lessons are still with me and I gratefully pass them on, knowing that someday, if I have performed my task well, my own students will grow to the point where they need to find their own way.

Finding your own way isn't necessarily a sign of disloyalty.  Sometimes it means that you were well-trained.

Your Brain is (Almost) Perfect, a book worth reading

Read Montague's Your Brain is (Almost) Perfect: How We Make Decisions is a fascinating exploration of the way in which our minds make decisions.  Using numerous analogies to computational models constructed by visionaries like Alan Turing, as well as comparisons to utilitarian decision-making theories, Montague explores various issues of interest, including how humans can override their own survival instincts in the right scenarios.

The book is somewhat technical; I found myself on several tangents in order to get some background information on some of Montague's examples, but it was an interesting and worthwhile journey.

An interesting piece is Montague's take on efficiency.  Similar in some ways to the utilitarian calculus of "maximize benefit, minimize harm".  Montague describes efficiency as "the best long-term returns from the least immediate investment"....a fascinating way to discuss the behavior of procrastinators. (ha!)

Revisiting the Cycle

Last year around this time, I made a similar post about cycles, but my thoughts are there right now, so I'm going to follow up a bit more.

I like back-to-school season.  It's extremely busy for me, but with good reason: I'm engaged in a process of renewal and improvement.  With the new school year at hand, I want to improve upon the curriculum that I taught last year.  I'd like to do a much better job of communicating it in a way that is both effective and entertaining!

As I've put more thought into this idea, I've also begun to consider how much of our lives become linked to the cycles of behavior that we construct and implement into our daily lives.  The routine that you do before work each morning, the habits that you have during your day, the behaviors that you act out afterwards....so many of these are linked to cycles, yes - but even more important is that since we construct and implement them, we control them.

Seems like common sense, but there are so many times when we find ourselves locked into bad habits and feeling unable to change them.

The answer is within us.

Ideas That Matter, a book worth reading

If there was to be an introductory text in the ideas that are at work in the early 21st century, Professor A.C. Grayling's Ideas That Matter would be a strong candidate for selection.  Ideas is written somewhat like an encyclopedia: no table of contents (although there is a good index at the back), with topics arranged alphabetically.  Although admittedly opinionated in content (sometimes to my amusement), Grayling makes topics like 'bioethics' and 'postmodernism' accessible for the average adult reader, at least enough to where they can begin perusing other texts in areas of interest that they discover while reading his book.

A while ago, Coach Tom recorded a video for us in which he was perusing the local bookstore for curriculum ideas - the main idea being that much of the inspiration for master teachers of the martial arts in the area of curriculum can be found in areas that are traditionally considered outside of the arts; however, an insightful teacher will perceive the connection and incorporate it into their practice.

Grayling's book would easily give that same teacher stepping stones for their next five years of curriculum.  You may find yourself reading it in pieces, or randomly flipping to certain sections, but you'll find value in what you see.

Always On The Move

Busy, busy, but never bored!

Ask me how I'm doing on most days, and you may receive that as my answer.  It's true.  In a manner of speaking, I'm always on the move.  I don't necessarily consider my life to be fast-paced, but I constantly have projects lined up for myself to take care of.  It keeps my life entertaining - I'm rarely ever bored, and if I find myself that way, it's often a sign for me to begin something else!

Boredom is a sign of an indecisive mind.  It is one thing to choose to relax, or rest, or engage in a recreational activity.  It is another thing to idle in your existence, wanting to do something but unable to initiate anything....or to oscillate between tackling several high-priority items and not getting any of them done while your mental convulsion fit passes.  Stop yourself when you hit this place.

Choose, and act.

Embracing the Minimalist Journey

"The things you own end up owning you."

~Tyler Durden (Fight Club)

Minimalist Journey is a blog that chronicles the story of Mark Savage, who engaged in a personal quest to make a list of everything that he owned (over 3,000 things) and then systematically reduce it until it was a list of 100 things.

His story was so remarkable to me that I have chosen to embrace a similar goal as a part of my UBBT 8 journey: I will give away, donate, trade, recycle, sell, or dispose of no less than 80% of my material possessions next year. (I'm starting now.)

How will I know if I'm achieving this?  Simple.  I'll be able to walk in my garage again. (ha!)

Seriously though, I've amassed way too much clutter in my life in the form of needless things.  It's been a splinter in my mind for far too long, and now that I've embraced The Compact during UBBT 7 (buying nothing new for a year), as well as a personal goal of excavating the clutter of my household, the realization that I own too many things is an ever-present phantom in my daily meditations.

It's a journey of cleansing.  I'm releasing myself of unnecessary material attachments, connections to an old life that was too full of commercialism, material acquisition, and unrestrained impulsiveness - freeing myself to embrace a path of simplicity and inner wealth.

Before you think I've gone off the deep end....stop and count how many CDs, DVDs, and in my case, video game cartridges, cassette tapes, VHS & Betamax tapes (!!!), records, and 8-track cassettes are in your home.  Do you really need THAT many pairs of shoes - how about giving some to Brian Williams?  How many tablecloths, bedsheets, towels, etc?  Could there be such a thing as having a few dozen too many power tools?  For you veteran competitors...how long does it take you to dust your collection, or did you just put it all into storage - why is it even there if the lessons live within you?

I'm embracing the Minimalist Journey to free myself.  Won't you join me?

Verisimilitude and Hyperauthenticity

Sorry, I'm throwing down the big words today - but it made you look.  Stay a while.  I'm going to dust off a corner of my brain and sometimes when I dust, I come across something that I had forgotten that I was looking for. ;)

In philosophy, verisimilitude refers to the 'truthlikeness', or the quality of realism in something, whereas for the purposes of my blog entry, I'll discuss the term 'hyperauthenticity' later in the paradoxical sense of 'being excessively authentic'....where 'authenticity' is simply being true to your inner self, as opposed to giving in to the pressures of superficial externalities in our society.

For example, Master Callos' 100 Examples of Good Martial Arts Videos is an outstanding project in which he's both sharing and encouraging us to share martial arts vids with a high degree of verisimility: a high level of quality approaching the ideal of "really outstanding martial arts".

One of the problems of verisimilitude arises in the works of Karl Popper.  In examining competing scientific theories, he asserted that even though the ultimate goal of scientific inquiry is the truth, it should be also acknowledged that, to some extent, the greatest scientific theories of the ages have all been false....including the current ones.  Yet, if all of these things have been false, in order for progress to occur, at least one theory (hopefully the current ones) must be 'less false' (or more true?) than the others.  This gives rise to another issue: it is difficult to clearly and meaningfully articulate how one false theory is closer to the truth than another, especially if we haven't yet arrived at the truth - how would we know with any degree of certainty if we got there if all we have are 'best possible' explanations?

(Careful, I'm committing heinous acts of martial blasphemy here!  Read onward at your own risk.)

An issue that arises for the martial practitioner is this: every martial art is, in a sense, a false theory.  It is a 'best possible' attempt to answer certain undesirable elements of our world (to avoid pain and pursue pleasure, as Tony Robbins might put it).

Consequently, every martial arts instructor that you've ever had - or will ever have - is wrong.

Well, at least to some extent.

And yet, that also means that to some extent, the concepts espoused by every martial art and every instructor are true, or at the very least verisimilitudinous.  So what is a student to do in this hazy land of partial truths and a quasi-readable blog entry with far too many huge words in it?

You need to decide: to what extent will you apply an objectivist or a constructivist approach to the training that you are receiving?  And to what degree will you place your trust in your teacher, despite the very real possibility that *something* that they are teaching is not true?

In plain talk: you need to find a balance between selecting/narrowing down specific fragments of the truth and assembling those fragments into something greater through interpretation and integration.

Style/Method XYZ contains fragments of the truth.  So does System/Association ABC.  Many students (and sadly, teachers) of the arts spend far too much time debating the verisimility of XYZ versus ABC or dogmatically proselytizing LMNOP, version 1.23 as taught by Supreme Fiery Monk-Like Being Alpha....and not nearly enough time creating a more useful and functional method for themselves.  Conversely, many students and teachers also begin to blend and construct methods without consideration to the verisimility of the theories that they are tossing into their martial crock-pot.

In the UBBT, you are seeking a more intelligent way to approach your training.  The teachings that you are receiving, although inevitably flawed in some way, contain a great deal of useful practices worth integrating into your lifestyle.  The practice of becoming an authentic human being through the kind of training that we are doing can and must include the means to protect yourself from harm as well as empower you with the means to select and constructively embrace that with is beneficial.

It should be noted that the pursuit of authenticity that I speak of is not an unhealthy attempt at hyperauthenticity in a single facet of your training or existence.  To engage in a hyperauthentic practice is more like a parody of authenticity - you chase it to the point of losing touch with reality and/or your inner self, which would be self-defeating.  It would be like becoming so obsessed with working out that you lose touch with family, friends, loved ones....and even if it wasn't working out, you'd start to sound pretty weird to them. ;)

The true pursuit of authenticity, of living the 'real-est' life possible, by its nature, cannot be overdone without becoming lost.  It doesn't even have to be overwhelming, because ultimately, we don't even really have a 100% certain way of determining the authenticity of your lifestyle; however, we know from the idea of verisimilitude that it is still possible to identify a 'less authentic' lifestyle from a 'more authentic' lifestyle....same applies to your training.

A subtle beauty of the UBBT process is that it has a built-in safeguard against hyperauthentic uberachievers....because in the act of balancing multiple objectives (all of them admirable), when you're overdoing something, you're bound to begin underperforming elsewhere.

Therefore, be mindful.  Reflect.  Identify what is useful.  Build it into your life.  Seek balance.

To some degree, everything that I tell you may be a lie, but within it, find the truth you can share.

Robert Guerrero, a Living Hero

(Pictured: Robert and his wife, Casey.)

I'll be the first to admit: I didn't know anything about Robert Guerrero until this morning.  I haven't followed his career and were it not for a beautifully-written article on Yahoo Sports, today would have been just another training day, but now Robert is one of my living heroes for making a real champion's choice and paying attention to what matters most.

Read about him here: Guerrero's biggest win came outside the ring

My First Century

 Quick note: I was not involved in this event at all, but I wanted an epic picture. :)

Before the end of the school year, I had set a personal goal of completing a "century ride" (100 miles) by the end of Summer 2010.

Today, I completed it.  Although I've been recovering from a minor crash, I've been coming back with a vengeance and knocked out 101.66 miles over the course of 13.5 hours - that includes my breaks, so my total ride time was closer to 11 hours.  You can check out my route here.  (By the way, it's a really nifty way to track your workouts!  There's similar sites for running, hiking, triathlons, general fitness, and more - just scroll down to the very bottom of the home page.)

Just wanted to keep you all posted - hope you're progressing on your goals too!  Now that I've accomplished this, I will still be commuting to work on my bike while the weather holds up (saves gas and it's pretty fun), but I will be spending more time on the mat before the school year begins.  I head back to preliminary meetings in early August, so I'm starting on it tomorrow!

What Motivates Us?

Using an interesting fusion of illustration and humor, Dan Pink suggests that the age-old notions of money and power do not drive us, but instead the desire for autonomy, mastery, and purpose.



Fascinating. It's a lot like running a martial arts school.

Affirmation

I have been training for this day my entire life.
Every victory is a stepping stone towards another.
Every mistake reinforces my experience for the next victory.

Today, I will enhance my health through my actions.
The recipe has always been there: eat well, train well, rest well.
The decision to live it is mine.

Today, there is a lesson to be learned, relearned, and shared.
The world is full of teachers when you use a student's eyes.
The decision to see it is mine.

Today, I will make a difference in someone else's life.
The opportunity is always there, waiting for me to take action.
The decision to do it is mine.

Today is my test - it is happening right now, and in every moment.
I have been training for this day my entire life.
My victory in this endeavor is my choice to make.

May/June 2010 Progress Report

For the first time in my life, my biceps are nearing the size of my head.

I looked back and noticed that I forgot to publish my May 2010 numbers - oops!  I will rectify that error today...but first, a bit on me.

Training has been picking up lately.  I've had to reformat my personal program in order to account for the increased activity, but it basically consists of the following pattern:

• 15-minute meditation after I wake up, followed by stretching & at least 60 minutes of cardio, every morning. (I'm on it Kai!)  Sometimes, I will add a short hike or bike ride afterwards....as of late, I've begun riding to work while the weather holds up.  Biking is greener and healthier than my hybrid car....at least until I can get that Flintstone mod put in so I can run it. :) j/k
• On weekdays, another 15-minute meditation during my break at work.  I close/lock my door, or leave campus to find a quiet space to do this.  During weekends, this is an afternoon meditation.
• On weekdays, perform some/all of my UBBT reps with my student team during our sessions throughout the course of the week.  I've adjusted my program so I can do less reps on weekends (or even take a break!).  Anything missed becomes part of my solo evening workouts.
• Afternoon training: on the bike while I run local errands, chill pace....but active and green!
• Evening training, varies by day: Monday (BJJ), Tuesday (solo, my old curriculum), Wednesday (solo, my new curriculum), Thursday (kenpo), Friday (boxing/bag work), Saturday (chill), Sunday (eskrima)

My primary focus has shifted towards my physical training and diet.  The remainder of my UBBT requirements are going well, but I'm having a tough time burning off the gut....so that's my test.  For me, that means I've slowed down on everything else in order to put first things first during the summer months.  Fortunately, I'm ahead on many of my other goals, so it's not hurting my overall progress.

With that in mind, here's an update on my current training totals (May 2009-present):

• Pushups: 105,500 (rowr!)
• Crunches & related reps of abdominal exercises: 112,500
• Mileage: 2188 (all that cardio & biking adds up, hitting 2.2k tomorrow!)
• Forms: 3000 (1k each of Chung-Mo 3 & 4, 800 of Gaebaek, and 100 each of Kata 18 & 19 from the Alemany system, with more coming as I learn Kata 20!)
• Sparring & Bag Work: 590 (almost 600, but well over the halfway mark!)
• Groundwork: 60 hours (I'm starting to get the hang of this 'tapping out' business, lol)
• Meditation: 210+ hours, estimated (15m, twice a day...adds up!)
• Acts of Kindness: 13,000 plus another 4000 through students.

Onward - let the next evolution begin! :)

Salman Khan, a Living Hero

Salman Khan is the founder of the Khan Academy, a not-for-profit organization with the mission of providing a high-quality education to anyone, anywhere.  In 2009, Khan's work earned him a Tech Award in Education, honoring his innovative use of technology to benefit humanity.

He has produced over 1100 videos, primarily in the areas of K-12 math and science education, with each video targeting a specific concept.  This stands in contrast to many university-produced videos, which are often just taped lectures.  Filming concept-by-concept videos serves as a form of individualized enrichment and/or private tutoring.  Students can access his videos on-demand, at their own pace, from anywhere with an internet connection.  Several other non-profit groups have begun to distribute offline versions of his materials to underprivileged communities.

Khan's videos have received over 6 million hits on YouTube.  I recommend them to anyone who could use a bit of math help.  It's like having an extra coach in your corner.

You can subscribe to the Khan Academy's YouTube channel here.

A full listing of the Khan Academy's videos can be found here.  Happy studying!

Pennies from Heaven

Every day, for as long as I can remember, I find a penny on the ground and pick it up.  Well, pretty much every day, and often, Jenn finds one too, but it's awfully close.  It might be on the trails where I've been running, in the parking lot of the grocery store, on the pavement at work, nestled in the grass at the local park, on the floor of a public restroom....you name it, I've found a penny there.  If it's not a penny, it's some other coin.  This morning, I found a dime - yay!

Little things add up to big things, as Coach Tom reminds us, and when I look at the coins that accumulate in the coin sorter in my car, I smile since, at least once a year, the world buys a cup of coffee and a bagel for a friendly homeless person.

It's not about the pennies or my scrounging hobby, though.  Every penny on the ground is an opportunity discarded by someone else, so small as to be insignificant to most people, just like the value of a minute or the value of reading a couple of pages a day.

How many little things are you overlooking on a daily basis?  That spare minute could be spent hugging someone, or sending off a quick 'I love you' message, or in quiet solitude, or something else important.  That spare penny might add up to a meal, a book, a charitable contribution, or more.  That loose piece of trash adds up to a giant oceanwide garbage soup.  That little candy bar after lunch transforms into pounds.

The little things that we ignore add up to larger problems, but the little opportunities that we seize add up to victories.  Handle the small stuff....because it's all small stuff until we make it big stuff.

Congratulations, Class of 2010

I was honored to serve as one of three speakers at LPS San Jose's graduation ceremony yesterday.  The ceremony was held on a beautiful summer afternoon at San Jose State University.  Several of my Live team members walked the stage that day - congratulations to John Caliva, Meaghan Del Real, Edgar Diego, Alexis Gonzalez, Fernando Ortiz, Hope Pross, Rafael Villa, and a special shout-out to Youssef Shokry, valedictorian of the LPS San Jose Class of 2010!

While it is always a duty of a speaker to present some words of wisdom to the graduating class, I felt especially obligated to share and reiterate some lessons from our time together, so I gathered my thoughts, infused some of my classic material, and produced a short speech about 'blinking' for the graduates.  Although the message was written for them, the content works for everyone, so I thought I'd share it with you here too:


Earlier this morning, as my mind stirred, I opened my eyes and blinked awake, as you and I have all done countless times in our lives.  It's fascinating how that works, actually.  It is said that the average person blinks about 16 times per minute during the time that they are awake.  That's roughly once every four seconds.

Each time they close, time slips by me.  Every time they open again, the moment that I once knew as "Now" is gone, and the moment that I used to call "Later" is here.  In this fashion, our eyes quietly mark the passage of our lives - closing one moment into memory in an instant, and opening to new opportunity in the next.

Yet, as often as my eyelids may flutter, sometimes when I blink, entire sections of my life have flown by me, and on those occasions, I find myself looking back, wondering where that time has gone.  It still feels like it hasn't been all that long since I left high school myself, which is most likely compounded by my tendency to behave like a 15-year-old.

On one occasion, I had blinked and found myself teaching here at San Jose State.  I was distracted while grading papers, amazed by the suddenness at which life could transform a student into a teacher, and my attention had drifted to a Craigslist ad from some little startup charter school that was looking for teachers.  I remember thinking it would be a fun part-time gig.

Then I blinked again, and found myself at the Cowell Houses at Stanford University with a bunch of young, nervous freshmen-to-be, much shorter in stature and with much higher-pitched voices, unsure of themselves and each other, trying to figure out this "LPS thing" and this "high school thing" for themselves.

They had no idea about the fine print on our sign, courtesy of Facebook, which read: "Welcome to our high school, please choose two of the following three options: good grades, adequate sleep, a social life."  Judging from the wide awake faces I'm seeing up here on the stage, I can say with confidence: You nerds have done well.

I couldn't begin or presume to explain all that you may have experienced or learned since that time.  From my point of view, I just blinked and now we're here.  For some of you, it may feel the same way, like it has all gone by so quickly.  If not, it will the next time you blink.

What I can say is this: you are not the children that you once were.  In the blink of an eye, you are someone else now.  Part of you fades away into yesterday every time you close your eyes, while another part remains in the moment to meet the part of you that you are becoming.

In each of those moments, there is opportunity - opportunity to transform yourself a little bit closer towards the person that you would like to become; however, you must decide to embrace the opportunity and then take action to move towards it, for opportunity is not the same thing as choice, and choice is not the same thing as action.

Opportunity presents itself in the blink of an eye and remains for an indeterminate amount of time.  It vanishes as quickly as it arrives unless you choose to seize it.

Choices are made in the blink of an eye and change the direction that we face in life, but without action, you aren't going anywhere.

Actions are the vehicles that carry us from blink to blink.  They are rooted in our choices.  Choices steer the wheel, action powers the engine.  

You can dream every night, you can see opportunities, and you can decide to embrace a new direction, but your actions create your destiny.  If you blink one moment and find yourself unhappy, you - and only you - have the power to change that.  

Change doesn't have to happen slowly.  It happens in the blink of an eye.  

Just watch today.

Blink in a few moments and you will have crossed the stage and entered a new phase of your life.

Blink again and you may find yourself living in a new place and working to create a new life for yourself.

Blink again and a pair of newborn baby eyes may one day be staring back at you.

But don't blink too quickly, my friends.  This isn't a race.  We all arrive at the same finish line eventually and at your age, grey hair is overrated.  There is no hurry. You will blink, whether you want to or not. 

Each time your eyes close, you will slip forward into another time.  What was "Now" is quickly becoming "Then".  Your future awaits you.  Embrace it with your eyes and hearts wide open.

This is not goodbye.  If it is our destiny, we will see each other again the next time that we blink.

Until then, choose wisely, my friends, and take action in the direction of your dreams.