Hello students & parents,
Happy Birthdays this month!
Carlos
Cody
Kate
Tremayne
Jenni
For this month, the following classes will be focusing on:
Morning Taiji: Taiji Jian (full form)
Evening Taiji: Taiji 13
Beginner Gongfu: Temporary joining Advanced Class
Kid's Gongfu: Review month
Advanced Gongfu: Qi Xing Quan (2-person form)
NOVEMBER CALENDAR: No classes on November 27th and 28th (Thanksgiving)
Wish everyone luck competing at the Tony Martinez Tournament tomorrow! (Saturday, Nov 2nd)
The Way Within: Finding Wisdom through Gongfu
Let's take a step back from the straining, external, tough world of gongfu and look at the softer, internal and deeper philosophy of gongfu, which holds just as much importance. I want to focus on core concepts of martial arts, in this case: gratitude, impermanence, wisdom & peace.
When you hear “gratitude” in the context of martial arts, maybe you picture bowing at the beginning and ending of class, honoring the studio & Shīfù. But gratitude in martial arts goes deeper than courtesy; it’s about fully seeing the fleeting beauty in every practice, every moment of your training. Think in every class, "Right now—this day, this form, this drill—is enough." Gratitude in gongfu is about learning to find contentment and awareness in each punch, every stance, without obsessing over perfect technique or distant goals. There is a difference between honing your movements to champion-like levels as a byproduct of your love of martial arts versus just chasing medals for the sake of clout and ego. There will days you'll be stubborn and wish you were more, that your worth is tied to a future trophy, but take the time to be grateful for the person you are today, able to withstand training, having the means to attend class and mastering your body, which is already a better version of you from just yesterday.
Another concept in the spiritual roots of gongfu is impermanence - a constant in martial arts and life alike. You might have seen videos of this concept, of buddhist monks spending hours, even days, on sand artwork on the floor, only to briefly observe it before brushing it all away. As hard as it is to see that happen, there is beauty within it. We often resist impermanence, clinging to things as they are, whether it’s a technique we’ve mastered, vast amounts of forms or how we view ourselves. Gongfu teaches that everything moves and shifts, and by fighting this reality, we only create our own limitations. Think of it like trying to grip sand—the harder we clutch, the more it escapes us. You just might have to "empty your teacup" to become not only a better martial artist but a better person. Embracing impermanence frees us up. It’s an invitation to flow with life and training alike, to absorb each lesson and movement as it comes and then let it go when it passes.
One concept often forgotten due to martial arts being a rough world is Compassion. Compassion in martial arts isn’t just about restraint in sparring or controlling our power. It’s the willingness to sit with our own failures and recognize struggles in others. Often, we’re our own toughest critics (despite Shifu yelling at you), coming down hard on ourselves for missed moves, slow progress or not achieving first place. Gongfu teaches us to break down those walls of judgment, extending kindness to ourselves and to others on the same journey, recognizing that we’re all moving, stumbling, and growing side by side. Olympians are the pinnacle of human athleticism, yet every olympian you see standing on that podium has spent years falling over and over again, having to retry every 4 years, enduring countless injuries and missed goals, with each "failure" as a stepping stone. Have compassion for yourself and your progress, which is your means to becoming the person and martial artist you want to become.
True wisdom in martial arts isn’t about collecting techniques, getting that trophy or memorizing forms. It’s about seeing clearly—understanding yourself, the nature of struggle, and how to apply what you’ve learned with purpose. Just as wisdom in life comes from stripping away illusion, wisdom in gongfu comes from stripping away ego, something I've had to learn the hard way. It’s about aligning our intentions, movements, and understanding to create something greater than physical strength. Every stance, every breath, reminds us that the martial path is not a series of end goals, but an unfolding journey.
Ultimately the biggest gift that I want our martial arts to give you is peace. Picture the calm lake within, undisturbed by the rush of a fight or the chaos of daily life, to where you can clearly see yourself. Martial arts isn’t a promise of a struggle-free existence, but a practice that can teach us how to remain steady within them. A practice to not only prepare you for physical battles but those hard internal battles we all have within ourselves. It's about letting go of distractions and finding calm within, the way a skilled martial artist stays grounded in battle. Inner peace comes when we stop grasping, when we accept each training session as it is, and when we can learn to be still—even in the heat of movement.
The path of gongfu isn’t about mastering a final technique or reaching a peak of perfection, as much as we strive to be champions. It’s truly about living fully in each step, each strike, each moment, with gratitude, acceptance, and openness and finding peace within the practice itself.
Shifu
HOUSEKEEPING ITEMS
As painful as it is sometimes, if classes result in only 1 student showing up, despite the weather or situations preventing students from attending, our policy is that classes are automatically cancelled. We'll try to prevent this (which is why texting helps if you're unable to come), but sometimes it can unfortunately happen.
Please hurry to change & save all post-class chatting to the lobby or outside - the locker room gets very crowded (especially with Kids + Adv Classes) and either students need to leave before the next class comes in and/or before we close up shop after the last class of the night.
If you've been with our school at least a month and still haven't ordered a uniform yet, let us know! This is mandatory for all students, INCLUDING TAI CHI STUDENTS, who've been with us at least a month. Please respond to your emails ASAP and use the ordering link HERE.
SCHOOL SCHEDULE
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