Dojo Discernments
Hi all!
Here is this week's edition of Dojo Discernments. You may have noticed we skipped last week's issue. I’ve been falling asleep by 8 p.m., and honestly, I needed it. I’m a man of routine, but when the body asks for rest, I listen. Now, we’re back on track.
Book I'm Reading
Warrior's Creed by Roger Sparks
This was recommended by another Recon Marine who trains jiu-jitsu. The book follows Roger Sparks through childhood, the Marine Corps including time as a Basic Reconnaissance Instructor, his career as a PJ in the Air Force, and his post-military journey.
Once again, I found meaning in suffering. It reminded me that there’s purpose in paying the price to hold a standard.
One evening, I crushed a couple hundred pages to finish it. My life and my training are better because of it, and I know yours would be too. Ask me for it and I'll lend it to you.
Quote I'm Pondering
Taken from an excerpt in Warrior's Creed
"When meeting difficult situations, one should dash forward bravely and with joy. It is the crossing of a single barrier and is like the saying, 'the more the water, the higher the boat.' -Yamamoto Tsunetomo
Don't fight the grandeur of an obstacle, let it make you rise.
Another Quote I'm Pondering
as quoted in Warrior’s Creed
"It is spiritless to think that you cannot attain to that which you have seen and heard the masters attain. The masters are men. You are also a man."
All that has been accomplished is possible for you.
Another Quote That Hits Home
Once again from Warrior's Creed as Roger's son is diagnosed with cerebral palsy
"Neuroscience is voodoo medicine at best. They don't know the cause or the extent of the damage, but it can be anything. Cerebral Palsy is a neurological deficit that's caused by something that's not quite explainable."
As someone who lives and has family with epilepsy this was a gut shot. The type of shot that hits the perfect place to permeate feeling, pain, and comprehension everywhere. Neurology is the unknown.
Our neurological and spiritual health is the reason for this newsletter, Jiu-Jitsu happens to be the medium.
What's Coming Up
This weekend we have a blue belt quintet team I'll be coaching in Sacramento on Saturday and next weekend I will be in Monterrey, Mexico at Ebi/Combat Jiu-Jitsu!
Send your prayers and spirit bombs!
Not too much mat talk this week. This tends to happen when I draw near to competition. We may have strayed from jiu-jitsu but not the path. The game is no longer about jiu-jitsu but about where you are in life with yourself and with God.
Thank you for your support!
Agredecido. Grateful.
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