Redding Shotokan Karate

I first began to practice in 1983. Now, we've all had to endure the inevitable "HI-YAH" / knife hand thing from people upon learning that one practices a martial art. In 1984 however, that expression temporarily changed to "Wax on, wax off", based on a line in the movie "The Karate Kid". I know it sounds like I am reminiscing and being rather cliche at that, but I found myself thinking about "The Karate Kid" and the whole "wax on, wax off" thing during practice last night.

For those of you who may have missed it or are too young to have seen the movie, the star is a young teen-aged boy who wishes to learn karate from an old master. He is, of course, expecting to practice karate but is instead told to wax an entire car lot of old clunkers. The boy does not understand and is even angry about having to do this. He wants to learn karate! What does waxing have to do with karate??!! When he finally does get to practice, the master shows him that the technique with which he "waxed on" and "waxed off", were the same techniques he would use in karate and he has built up a fair amount of strength from waxing all those cars! It is suddenly clear to him that he was learning karate and he didn't even realize it. (I have never been accused of being good at summarizing, so if I haven't explained this well enough, you'll have to rent the movie.)

The reason I am bringing this up is that I encounter this scenario in my own practice on a fairly regular basis. While I do not prefer to allow myself to think, "I do not like this particular exercise", I often feel it. And that is most often when my greatest learning is actually occurring. Because I find that I usually have somewhat of an aversion to exercises which force me "out of the box"; it is those very exercises which I MUST do. And it is those very exercises which stretch me in ways that I would NEVER voluntarily stretch myself simply because they are outside my "comfort zone".

Last night's class was very much one of those classes. Now, don't get me wrong...it was an AWESOME class. But, there were many times when I wished we would just do something else, something I was good at, something I was comfortable with, etc., etc., etc.,......Pure selfishness on my part, bordering on cowardice. The truth is, it was a HARD class, plain and simple. But, like everything else I have done when I did not want to, I learned a great deal.

I think it is safe to say that if you are comfortable and good at what you are doing, you are probably not learning much (you are comfortable because you have already learned it and can do it). And while it is important to practice that which you are good at in order to hone your skills; it is equally, if not more, important to also practice those things which you do not like simply because you may be uncomfortable or do not feel that you perform them well.

Wax on, wax off...