Real Experience

I've been listening to a fantastic audio book lately. Not one that I would necessarily recommend to all ages, due to it's controversial content. There's the disclaimer. It's called "How to Change Your Mind" by Michael Pollan. I've been a fan of his writing for many years. He has many books I've read that I found particularly fascinating.

I'm not going to go into great detail on what the book is about. The part that has really stuck with me so far is about our perception. When we're children, all of our experiences are fresh and new and so our brains absorb the new information and grows. As we age, our brains begin to fill in information for us based on past experiences. It's quicker and easier and therefore more efficient for our brains to process experiences this way. But, because the brain is filling in this information, one no longer has true experience.

Based on the past, the brain predicts what an experience will be like. So the way we perceive things to be, is somewhat tainted. Even our perception of time can be changed and morphed into something completely subjective. Although time is relative anyways. The whole point here is that as you get older, it gets harder to change the way you think. In order to remain truly open minded, it's very important to step completely out of the day to day grind, and let oneself experience something that was never thought possible.

In our training, it's the same. The farther we progress in our training and the more we practice something, it becomes much more difficult to change how it is executed and how we approach our practice. It's very important to step outside of our comfort zones, let go of our egos, and try something new. This is how we continue to progress.

Growth

We all have moments in our lives that define us. They are the things that we look back and we think, wow, that helped make me the person I am today..

When I had one of my birthdays in China, I remember I decided, hey, I'm going to climb Mount Wudang for my birthday. I was turning 29, and it was going to be my last year there. I figured, what the heck?

I didn't take days off of training. On Wednesday, I went for our usual half day of performances where we showed Sifu whatever we've been working on. After performance, I packed my stuff up and I left. I hiked over night and I arrived for the sunrise at roughly 445am. I saw the milky way. I realized how easy it would be to just walk off of a cliff and I saw many people doing their pilgrimages up the mountain in the middle of the night. I was so sweaty, and I froze my butt off because on the top of the mountain in the sunrise, it's cold. The temperature always drops right after the sun comes up, and out comes the gusts of wind. I went for breakfast and then slowly, made my way back to the school. I decided to take the bus back, because I had class the following day.

I was reminded of this moment today. Sometimes experiences are inspired by others, and you just get to tag along. But the times where you inspire yourself, are always the most memorable. I had no one to share this memory with, but it remains fresh in my mind as a certain accomplishment that was inspired by me, and experienced by me alone.

There is power in learning to push and transform yourself.

Everything is Medicine

I've been reading a book recently about Shamanic traditional healing practices from the Amazon jungle. It's fascinating, and makes me question a lot of the things I think I know. My favourite kind of book. Today I read something that really meant something to me. I had an epiphany.

He said everything is medicine. And he didn't mean food or plants that can be used as natural medicine. He meant every illness is medicine. Every time your body tells you something is wrong, is a form of medicine. The things that you learn about yourself, and the strength you find within can be the most powerful kind of medicine you can get. I have had many injuries throughout my kung fu training. I was reflecting on every injury I had in China. I learned how to train with a pulled hamstring, how to stretch through scar tissue afterwards, and what kind of massage and other treatments I needed to heal.

He suggested there were two ways to deal with this kind of medicine. Fight it and fear it, or embrace it and learn from it. I realized I have almost mixed these two approaches together when I think about my experience with GBS. I try to embrace it and I have definitely learned a lot from the experience. But I am also so afraid. Afraid I'll get it again. Afraid this means I'm susceptible to other auto-immune diseases. Afraid that I won't be able to live the full life I want.

Most of the time I'm so proud of myself. I'm still amazed at my own strength and how much I've recovered sometimes. I worked hard, and I pushed my limits constantly. But there's this fear buried in there that catches me off guard sometimes. I am paranoid anytime I feel sick that something's coming. There's some big sickness looming over me, and I'm not done yet. I know the more I think like this, the more likely it is to come to fruition. So I guess I haven't accepted the medicine I've been given, yet.

Happy Canada Day

I feel like I accomplish so much more during a long weekend than I do on any regular weekend. I wonder if that's just perception. I mean obviously, I have a whole extra day. But I seem to find that I squeeze in much more during the regular two days than I usually do. Again, is that possibly just perception?

It's interesting how dynamic time can be. It can move incredibly fast when I'm immersed in a task, especially one with a deadline. But in moments, time can slow down to a crawl and it seems I have all the time in the world, although I find these moments few and far between. Reading Sharida's blog, I've really been trying to take an extra 5 minutes for myself to bask in the glory of living life. I've had some really great moments this weekend.

It's very easy to get carried away by the momentum of life and of stress and business. I was fortunate enough this weekend to have the time to enjoy the tasks I had to do, make choices as to the priority of each of the things, and make tangible progress towards completing them. Plus, I got some quality dog time, which was therapy all in itself..

Suspicious

The last month and a half has been very frustrating, stressful, and mostly depressing. Don't get me wrong. There are certainly these amazing moments, and some fantastic opportunities, and I appreciate these things more than ever. Maybe that's one of the benefits of bad situations.

I could list all of the things gone wrong.. Dan's job, the motorcycle accident, being rear-ended, having my identity stolen. These things individually could be a cause for stress, but it seems like everything has happened all at once. I have spent incredible amounts of time on the phone, on the internet, filling out paperwork, and in various locations dealing with all this stuff. I'm so busy at work I'm having a hard time completing the day's tasks, but I'm also distracted and less efficient.

This weekend I went into a TD branch to discuss some fraudulent account under my name. I was listening to myself explain it to the teller, and then the manager, and I honestly just had to laugh. These are situations that happen in the movies, not in real life, and not to someone that has as financially boring a life as I do.

It's unfortunate that these experiences leave me less trusting, and more suspicious of people and their motives.  It is fortunate however, that I have so many people in my life that I do trust.

A Breath

I am, and probably will continue to be, someone that has a lot on my plate. I enjoy being social. I enjoy accomplishing things in my spare time. I just don't enjoy when I unintentionally over-commit myself. I don't like being late, or not being somewhere when I say I'm going to be. 

Kung fu is one of those things that I've always managed to make time for. Even if it's just a little bit here and there. Or some mental brainstorming and processing of some concept we've been working on. It's always been there. Sneaking it's way into things. Which is one of the ways that I continue to feel engaged even when my life gets crazy. 

Though life has been hectic the last few weeks, I've made a lot of progress mentally. I don't feel like I get so easily overwhelmed, but at the same time, it builds up slowly, so I often don't notice it. It becomes like some kind of fervor. I just start getting more and more frantic, so that by the time I realize where I'm at mentally, it's gone too far.

I have realized that some of the things that are going on, were starting to weigh on me. I was letting myself get too caught up in that sense of urgency. None of the things are urgent. None of them are going to be easy, but if I just keep making small progress forward. I will figure these things out.

Re-perspectivized (yep I made that up)

These past few weeks have been difficult on me mentally and emotionally. After Dan's motorcycle accident, we were left with a lot of headaches in regards to the insurance company. The other party denying fault, whether or not it makes sense to fix the bike that they wrote off, or whether we should take the money and walk away. When will we get the police report? We've been left in a sort of limbo.

Then, last Saturday, I got a call from a collections agency regarding a credit card that I don't actually have. I confirmed with BMO that indeed, this is a legitimate call, but then am left with hours of time on the phone, filling out papers, filing a police report etc., attempting to prove that I am really me, and that no I have never had that credit card. I have been left feeling victimized, concerned, and all around pretty vulnerable.

Thankfully, we had Pandamonium this weekend. This was a great way to bring me back to the moment, to engage with some very important causes, and participate in an event that really speaks to me. Also, I spent the day surrounded by friends and like-minded individuals, who constantly leave me feeling inspired and fulfilled. I am so grateful to be a part of Silent River Kung Fu.

On the Outside

Not being in the I Ho Chuan gives me a different perspective on our school's charity fundraiser, Pandamonium. It's interesting that, as a team member, there's so much planning and organizing that goes into the event. It becomes difficult to comprehend how the rest of the kwoon isn't as excited as you are about it.

It's different as a student not involved in the I Ho Chuan. Interestingly, I even have a secret spy in their midst, but I still feel much more disconnected from the event than I have in the past. As a student I see how someone else who's never been behind the scenes at this event might perceive what's going on vs. a member of the team.

It's harder to engage and takes more personal effort to be inspired by the mission than when you're on the team always talking about it. It made me realize, how important it is to engage students throughout the year. Not that this is the first time I've had this realization... You have to have the conversation over and over and over again about how important these core values are. This is what represents our school, not our kicks and punches, but how we conduct ourselves in the community and the world outside of the walls of our school. But it's also too easy to wait for others to make the real difference. I am trying to remind myself that many small actions, can make a big change.

Ego

 At the beginning of class, we have our bowing in ceremony where I try to focus on what's to come and prepare myself physically and mentally for learning. Or at least that's what I thought I was doing. But we had a discussion at the end of class on Thursday that made me realize that perhaps my cup isn't as empty as I thought.

One of the purposes of the bowing in ceremony is to figuratively "empty your cup"; A ceremony to pay respects, remove your ego, and start with a fresh perspective ready for learning. Something to remind us of our humility. Ideally, as a black belt, you are able to take a completely new concept, and apply it because of your understanding of the six harmonies. But many times, our ego prevents us from letting go of what we know, and hampers our efforts to learn. In order to achieve a real connection with your instructor however, this is a hugely important step.

So, it was a wake up call. I have some work to do. Which I already know, but it gives me a great direction to go in and gives me a renewed purpose. To cultivate that level of learning and understanding.

Lethargy of Sitting

I have a pretty sedentary job. Not that this is odd in today's world but, it's one of the things that I don't enjoy about it. I have a sit/stand desk which helps, and part of my job also involves interacting with my coworkers, so I'm walking around the office.

I've just noticed that the less I move around, the less I want to move. The more lethargic I feel, and it really affects my whole day. If I'm stuck at my desk all day, it has a tendency to carry over into my after work hours. I get home and I just want to sit on the couch like a potato. I can see how many people get sucked into this cycle of sit all day, sit all night. I have become more and more aware of this since I was promoted. I used to be in and out of the office/shop all day, running around and picking things up. Now I'm almost always doing paperwork. Ugh. The downside of hazardous materials removal, is that it requires a lot of legal paperwork.

So I've started to pay more attention to my fitbit. I already used it as a gauge to how active I was, but now I'm listening to it when it tells me I need to get up and move. Even if I just get up a do a few stretches, it invigorates me, and keeps me active. The only downside is that I'm also taking a business related course, and that too, requires a lot of sitting and note taking. School 1 - Mel 0.

Curriculum

One of the most difficult parts of planning our own school is deciding what to incorporate in our curriculum. There are so many valuable tools that I have learned here, and in China, and sometimes I struggle to see how the two will mesh together. I want to continue with my Kempo training. We practice much more application, sparring and shield work skills here than we did in China. But at the same time, a large portion of my practice there was what we call "internal". We practiced Tai Ji and Qi Gong every day, and built a great foundation for our internal alchemy. Not that this practice doesn't exist here, but it is not our main focus, at least generally, not until we reach a much higher level. 

Somehow, I like to envision a curriculum that incorporates both as major components to our training. I personally have felt the benefits of a daily practice that incorporates the internal and the external, hard and soft, slow and fast. And I'm certain that it can be achieved, it's really how to create the right culture in the school to nurture both these practices. Which I feel like Silent River has done in a way, but the question is how? How do you teach the student that is interested in studying meditation and qi gong, the value of something like sparring? And how does one teach the student most interested in practicing applications and techniques, the value of Tai Ji and meditation? 

In my daily gratitude journal, almost every day, I am thankful for the mentors I have, and the community I am a part of. I hope to be able to continue to communicate these values to the next generation of martial artists. 

Connections

I met up with an old friend I haven't spoken to in ten years this Saturday.  It's interesting connecting with someone that you haven't seen in so long. We grew up together from 7 to just after high school graduation. We lost touch, met up in China briefly, and that was the last time we spoke.

The most prominent thing that I recognized is that even though we are in very different places in our lives, there are many common themes.

A frustration with our inability to communicate effectively in our relationships.  And the fact that you get very little guidance in that capacity in school and as a youth.

Recognition that we are among many that we so often don't understand.  Our perspective on things of value is different than others we meet. I'm lucky in that I've surrounded myself with like-minded people at kung fu.

The knowledge that our grandparents are old enough that that are starting to require care and, that someday, it will be our parents, and then us in the distant future.  It's amazing how reminders of our mortality continually worm their way into our lives.

But among all those heavy topics, we managed to still laugh and share. Maybe we're not off to such a bad start after all. And I am thankful that during many of my formative years, I had friends like him to learn from.

Sparring

Sparring is something I've always loved. Not that I've ever enjoyed getting punched in the eye or nose or anywhere for that matter. But I love the thrill of it and trying to implement new techniques or styles.

When we were training in China, sparring was something that I dreaded. We didn't practice with control, and we had very little guidance. Most of our sparring was matches with opponents chosen for size, and the directions to punch each other as hard as we could. Further on, when we added kicking, there was somewhat more instruction, but still, for an unseasoned student, it was frightening. Yes, there were injuries, but fortunately, nothing that didn't heal.

Something I realized while sparring with a group on Saturday was how much I learned from those experiences. One, I learned that an insane Chinese kid isn't going to stop trying to punch you as hard as he can in the face, unless you punch him as hard as you can. Two, I learned that it's hard to let go of your control when you're not in a life or death situation. Three, I learned some things about technique, due to injuries from poor form.

But one of the things I definitely learned, that has made me a lot more confident in my sparring, is that put a pair of gloves on, and you can take a lot more than you expect. It's amazing to spar with people you trust. Mistakes can be made, but you know that everyone is doing their best to save you from injury. You can laugh with someone after a good punch in the eye, when there is no ego in the match, you're both just practicing.

I was reminded of the amazing culture of the students at Silent River, and how lucky I am to be a part of it. Thanks for all the rounds!

Step 2

This week the lion dance seminar started. It was very difficult for me not to take part in it. I was proud of myself though. That might seem weird.

I had decided previously that I was going to take part in the seminar, and over time, I started to question whether it was a great idea or not. I've been feeling a little overwhelmed recently, and I am trying to recognize when I start to feel that way.

I am one of those people that tends to over commit and burn out. I still don't have the same amount of energy I had before GBS, but I think I manage my energy pretty well. I have been starting out most of my days with a little meditation or qi gong to get myself off on the right foot.

Trying to take some courses and work full time is tougher than I expected, and so I'm trying to continue forward, and not let my school progress stagnate. It's interesting taking an online course. It challenges me and my tendency to procrastinate.

All in all, things are positive. I recognized the symptoms of negativity and made decisions preemptively to counteract it. Definitely another step in the right direction.

Pilates

I've started going to Pilates once a week. It was never something I was particularly interested in, but some things about my body after my recovery have changed, and I've started having some pretty serious back/hip issues that I wanted to do something about. Stretching helps, but it's not enough. 

I had a one on one session on Saturday morning which was really great. I noticed some things about my posture that could really use some changing. Also, I made some realizations about the fact that I'm not using the right muscles to do my stances sometimes. I think that might be why, my back actually gets worse the more I practice. Don't get me wrong, I'm still working on everything, but we made some small adjustments to my horse stance. And a few observations about some of my kicks that might help me out.

One of my goals this year was to work on strengthening my core to help with my back, and I feel like I'm definitely going in the right direction. 

21 Day Cleanse

Dan and I have started a 21 day cleanse called Clean. There's a book associated with it, and now a cook book if you're interested in checking it out. Also there's an associated website (https://www.cleanprogram.com/the-program). Although, there are a lot of ads for the clean program with smoothie packets and all that stuff... We're just doing it from scratch.

Basically, we don't eat any inflammatory foods or things that are common allergies. No dairy, gluten, nightshades, corn, peanuts, etc. No processed foods or sugars. The cool thing about this cleanse, is that there is a 12 hour fast every night. So from supper at 6 pm to breakfast at 6 am, you can only drink water and herbal teas. It is also a liquid breakfast, and liquid supper with your main meal being at lunch time. With a lot of the literature I've read on fasting recently, I thought this would be an interesting way to clean our bodies.

In China, a couple of times we did a meditation retreat with some fasting involved. We were allowed to eat small amounts of fresh fruit, and supplemented our food with cool herbal medicine balls made with honey and a lot of things that were out of my abilities to translate. They tasted terrible and had an interesting effect on the body, and I distinctly recall thinking how difficult it was to focus when my stomach was grumbling the whole time. But overall, a positive experience.

I generally eat pretty healthy, and so does Dan. But I can't see the harm in changing our eating habits this way for a few weeks and then slowly adding foods back in to our diet. It is an interesting experiment anyways, and it also feels a little like spring cleaning.

Houston+Cold

So, I got to spend 8 lovely days visiting my sister. I have to say, there is nothing better than the holidays I spend with her and my brother-in-law. We are great at holidaying together. We have some ideas of things we'd like to do, but no stress if any of the things don't happen or if plans change. We went to New Orleans for a couple of days, and spent most of our time just wandering around randomly and looking at things. The second day I probably walked a good 16 km.

Unfortunately, I've been fighting a cold for weeks. It's weird. Usually when I start to feel sick, I do everything I can think of to combat it. Eucalyptus oil, steaming, oregano oil, chicken broth, lots of green tea and water, lemon and honey, and dosing up on vitamins and lots of fruits and veggies. This time, I did all that stuff, and it didn't really work. I got a cold, got a little better, flew to Houston, got significantly worse, lost my voice for a couple of days, got better, flew home, got worse again. Now I'm stuck with some congestion and a really annoying cough.

I know part of my issue is I let myself get too stressed coming up on my vacation. But this thing has been making it very hard for me to recover. I'm more tired and therefore in itself, it's a struggle to beat it. Hopefully after this restful weekend, I'll kick it in the butt. I'm looking forward to being back in the groove of things this week.

Thanks

This week, I am thankful. I have had so many opportunities to teach, and to ask and answer questions. It has kept me mentally and physically engaged. I am so fortunate to have a group of people that is so open and receptive but at the same time, challenges me.

I listen to a lot of music with the theme of moving away from materialism, finding your true passions, doing your best to make a positive impact etc. Lately, when I hear these songs, I feel like I am taking the right steps, I'm on the path to becoming the person I really want to be.

I am also thankful to my cat Jax, who is being super helpful while I'm trying to write this blog... 😏

So Far So Good

So, the year of the dog is underway. Here's a brief rundown on where I'm at.

I had my first Pilates class this week. I'm trying to strengthen some of my core muscles to help with my posture and stability of my back. I actually have an incredibly flexible spine, which sounds great, but also means that it requires a lot of muscle to keep everything where it should be.

I was so fortunate to start teaching some of my sword forms at the I Ho Chuan class and open training. I feel lucky to have this opportunity. I learn so much from every question, and every time I have to explain something, whether it is the first time, or the tenth.

I wrote in my gratitude journal every day this week. I feel this really keeps my perspective in the right place. It keeps me focused on enjoying the time that I have and making the most of these experiences.

I started a marketing course that I'm taking through Athabasca University. I can see it's going to be heavy, but I find the content surprisingly interesting. I'm always thinking of ways that I can apply the things I'm learning mentally. It helps that my parents own a business and that is also a goal of mine for the future.

I connected with an old friend and made plans for dessert on Saturday.

And, I recorded most of this stuff. I have to say, I struggle with keeping track of things. But there's no way to get better at it, than to just suck it up, and do it.

The Year of the Dog

I'm second degree now. Do I feel different? Actually, yes. Having the chance to look back at our past few Chinese New Years banquets, I can see how far I've come. I can also see how much I've grown and changed since I earned my black belt. How much my mental game has changed. How I've realized that I need to be the one pushing my training forward. Being left to your own devices can be intimidating, and frustrating. But worth every internal argument that I've had with myself.

The coming year, most of my personal goals are oriented towards my mental health. I think over time I've realized that I don't recognize very quickly when I'm getting overwhelmed. It sort of sneaks up on me, and before I know it, I'm past the point of recovery. Before GBS, I thought I could take on anything and deal with it. Now I realize that is a completely unrealistic expectation of anyone. I am more prone to anxiety and fatigue, but in some ways, it has also made me more aware of my mental state. Another good thing that has come out of this experience.

I have set goals to help me spiritually and mentally, but I am keeping the physical goals as per the usual. I set some goals for the year of the rooster for my kicks and stances, and I have made progress and intend to continue that. Another goal I have for this year is learning to deal with my lower back/hips. I have chronically had an on again/off again struggle with my lower back. So, I've been getting physio and practicing some boring but effective exercises and stretches. Looking into learning some functional exercises for strengthening or supporting.

I am going to be focusing on all of my long fist style forms. They are kind of like Kempo, in that they all kind of fit together, so it will be a good refresher. Plus, doing long fist forms requires a different sort of coordination, which I think will benefit my training at this point. I also have a goal of working on some of my long weapon training. Part of my issue there, is that a couple of them need to be constructed. One step at a time I suppose.  I'm gonna have an awesome weapon collection by the end of it... Good luck to everyone in the coming year. I'm excited to see the potential of the dog team!

Adopting Driveways

This is one of my favourite parts of being on the team. I know it can be frustrating sometimes, but I get so much out of this requirement, I find it difficult to hold onto any resentment. I feel bad that so many of my teammates are missing out on the experience.

It's important to have empathy. We can't all completely understand each other but, trying to put yourself in your neighbours' shoes, can really change your perspective. Every time I go out to the driveways, I end up reflecting on my own circumstances and how grateful I am to be able to be a part of this. There are certain experiences that trigger memories and feelings for each of us. This one always reminds me that I could have been there. It could have been me that struggled through winter snow falls. I could have ended up house bound. I could have needed that help.

But instead, I'm blessed with the strength of character and body to help out some seniors. I get to do that for them because of how lucky I am. I don't know if I will ever take that for granted again. It's good to have these reminders. Remembering difficult times can make some of the sweet ones, all the sweeter.

Although, I usually fail to feel the same when it's my own driveway....

Program Vs. Process

In the meeting on Saturday, Sifu Brinker once again reminded us that the I Ho Chuan is not a program, it's a process. And this really resounded with me for some reason this time more than others. Maybe because I'm on the verge of attempting to continue this process on a more individual basis, but I don't feel like I'm on the verge of the end of a program.

I have a vision of where I will be in the next ten years and it involves a lot of change. But I feel like I have fairly realistic expectations. It doesn't mean that I can't achieve something great. But I do realize that, great change takes great effort. As much as I have a vision, I also need to have a plan and take action to get myself where I want to be. I have worked very hard this year, to deal with some of my anxiety since getting sick. I have done a lot of introspection to see what I really want for my future. And I feel that I have a great support structure to help me along on my path.

I'm excited for next year and to see what this process has done for me outside of the team. I'll continue to journal my experiences.

Budgeting

This week I made myself a budget. We're trying to work on saving some money to put towards the house we'll be building and also of course, for some fun. I used the Gail Vaz-Oxlade interactive online budgeting tool to help me look at how much money I make, and what I'm spending it on. The principle is that you add up all of your income for one month, take off your fixed expenses, and calculate your variable expenses. You then take the variable expenses and divide them on a week by week basis, and voila, you've got the money you can spend each week. 

This has already made me aware of a few things. One, moving into your own home, there are some things that you might need to purchase that are outside of your regular necessities. Like, a cat litter mat. Seems like something you could live without, but when you've got a cat that loves kicking litter all over the house, it soon becomes an issue. Or, if you have a friend over that isn't so comfortable sitting on the floor. We came up with a solution, but it was interesting. 

It has also however, made me conscious of the things that I don't need. For example, I spent most of my weekly allowance already on groceries. Admittedly, I got more than one week's worth of some things just because I went somewhere a little out of the way. But I just shrugged and figured, well, I guess I'll just have a very frugal rest of my week. This isn't including gas of course. At this point, that's not an option. 

This has reminded me of why I want to simplify. If I can live without so much, what do I really need except an income, the fuel for my body, the roof over my head, my family and of course, kung fu. 

Preparations

Since coming home from China, and actually including my last year there, I have been part of the I Ho Chuan. It is going to be an interesting time transitioning into not being on the team. I'm hoping that a)Dan will be a sort of lifeline to the team and b)many of the relationships I've built over the past several years will keep me feeling connected. This is the most important thing that Sifu Brinker and I discussed. I will have to make an effort to connect with people and also make sure I ask others for help.

I have been spending a lot of our recent practices trying to really immerse myself in the process of our preparations.  Enjoying the time with my team mates, taking inspiration from our progress, and putting it into my own practice. These are the things I will miss the most.

That being said, I have set myself some lofty goals for the next year. I am going to have to work twice as hard to stay mentally engaged, and I will have to be more accountable to myself. These are some of the things that my next year will bring to the forefront of my training. I know it's not over yet, but it's coming quick. I'm still working towards my requirements, but also mentally preparing myself for what's to come. It will be a new adventure.

Simplify

One of my goals for the coming year is to re-organize and get rid of some stuff I no longer use, or that I never used to begin with. As I met with Sifu Brinker, he suggested that it's easier to clean and organize if you live a more minimalistic lifestyle. He was telling me about his journey of trying to cut his possessions down to one hundred. I said to him though, just with the amount of canning supplies I have, I think that would take up nearly half of my total number.

This week Dan and I moved back into our own place. I realized while unpacking and deciding what I should get rid of, that it isn't necessarily about the number 100. Just like the push ups that we do daily aren't about the number 50,000. The number is irrelevant. It's what the number represents and what we've learned on our journey.

You have to have a goal and something to work towards. I think this will be a great way to simplify my life.

Tea

I have been reminded while my sister has been here of many simple joys that her and I share. I started a new knitting project that she helped me choose the yarn for. And we had a tea party Christmas day with her. It was a very special tea party. Following a sort of Chinese discipline for the brewing and then sitting and talking about the flavours of our tea with each brew. It brought me back to the moment on  Christmas day, and reminded me to be grateful for every moment of the day.

I wanted to share a YouTube video with you guys. It's called "five ways tea makes you happier". There's some very simple things in here that may either reaffirm your appreciation for tea, or possibly make you consider becoming a tea drinker. It's about 20 minutes, so I won't hold it against you if you aren't interested. But I highly recommend giving it a try. Just one sip...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LOXE3sPRTg&list=PLAtdGF0-xVNYrcC6UaXwH5EAb7-pO6ygF

New Years Resolutions

This new year was a lot of fun. Unfortunately, I've been a little under the weather. I can't even say I'm really sick, as I've just got some sinus and chest congestion, but I've been doing my best to combat it at the beginning. The weird hours over the holiday haven't helped. But, this is the first time I've had any kind of illness in quite some time.

When I found out that GBS was considered an auto immune disease, I did a lot of research on functional medicine. So in other words, treating your illness with your food, meditation, and physical activity. I do take some supplements, but in general, we try very hard to eat nutrient dense foods in a large variety.

As of late, I have been slipping in my diet habits, and I have been noticing. Nothing drastic, just small things that to me, are indicative of some of the issues I have chronically had for most of my life. I know that auto-immune issues are much more common in women than in men, and I also know that I have a history of them in my family. So with this information, I try to do my best to preemptively make the decisions that I know make me feel better.

There are also the things with your mental state and stress that play a huge part in nervous system function. So to combat these I had also started a gratitude journal that I have let slip in the last couple months. Add some meditation I haven't been doing, and it's back to a long list of changes that I need to take the time to re-implement into my life.

Most of these things weren't even part of my goals for this year. Again, like we've said in our I Ho Chuan meetings many times, the perfect time to restart is now. So, with the beginning of a new calendar year, I am going to reaffirm why these things are important to me and start over.