Tag Archives: letting go

Be Like Water

I remember hearing this for the first time in 1971. For a year, I practiced Kung Fu and learned even my diminutive 100lbs could be a force to be reckoned with….    Most important in my development was going with my nature – choosing goals that I was likely to do. Example: It does not matter how good for me tofu may be, or how many times it got to my refrigerator, if I could not get it down my mouth, trying to make myself eat it was a useless goal. Now when choosing changes to eating, exercise, etc, I start with what am I likely to actually do.

Be Like Water: The Philosophy and Origin of Bruce Lee’s Famous Metaphor for Resilience

“In order to control myself I must first accept myself by going with and not against my nature.”

With his singular blend of physical prowess and metaphysical wisdom, coupled with his tragic untimely death, legendary Chinese- martial artist, philosopher, and filmmaker Bruce Lee (1940-1973) is one of those rare cultural icons whose ethos and appeal remain timeless, attracting generation after generation of devotees. Inspired by the core principles of Wing Chun, the ancient Chinese conceptual martial art, which he learned from his only formal martial arts teacher, Yip Man, between the ages of thirteen and eighteen. When he left Hong Kong in 1959, Lee adapted Wing Chun into his own version, Jun Fan Gung Fu – literal translation: Bruce Lee’s Kung Fu – and popularized it in America. (I bought his book this morning.)

Changes,changes, changes

goodbye Black MountainThe winds of change are moving me along. The sale of my previous house closed yesterday!!!! (Dance of Joy)  My new location will not have internet for two weeks- which among other things means, no posts until then. After being connected daily for years, I wonder if I will feel very isolated. What will I do with my time….oh wait, I believe unpack is the answer. During this change I have missed having the time to post and really missed the reading the  input from the minds and hearts of the folks I follow. In the meantime, I will be collecting pictures, thoughts and poems to share. See you in two weeks.

Daily Prompt – Free Association

At the moment my personal world is going through interesting times. I do miss blogging and will get back to it once I have a settled home again. Those of you that have followed me for months know that after the trial of getting the house ready to show, finally getting a contract , the last month has been filled with packing. I have reveled in the excitement of my new future home which gave the strength to keep packing. Then the title search revealed that I did not own the mineral rights to my property. Did you know that you could buy property without the mineral rights? So I pursued buying the mineral rights from the original owners three surviving children. $4,000 dollars later and we were almost good to go. The day scheduled for the moving truck arrived and the owner of my future house graciously let me to move the furniture in without taking possession of the house. I had left myself a bed that inflates and a folding chair and my computer. It rained and rained which turned to ice and snow. Without coverings the windows the house got colder and colder. During the first night , the mattress lost most of the air. Morning came with a ringing phone in the other room and me lying on the floor with the remaining air billowed up on either side of me. I climbed my way out and found my body was not happy in so many places. OK still being brave and trying to stay calm but starting to lose the battle. The one remaining person that needed to sign off on the mineral rights lives in Texas, out far enough that fed-ex doesn’t deliver on sat. That was a week ago. Her husband becomes gravely ill, is taken to the hospital and is still in ICU. The fed-ex was at home and so it never went anywhere. Now is a week later and Bella and I have moved in with a friend until this is over.  I have had a lot of practice with my relaxation breathing.