No Competition – No Fight

“He’s too big Sensei.  Every time we collide I get knocked back.”

“Then don’t collide.”

“How else can you fight, there’s got to be an interaction of force and there’s no doubt that his is bigger!

“Then don’t fight.”

“How else am I supposed to learn Karate…….”

“You aren’t listening to what I’m saying.”

“It doesn’t matter how hard I train, how much road work I do, How many techniques, this guy trains just as hard and he’s bigger, so size works to his advantage……………”

“You’re just size obsessed…………  It’s not what you’ve got, it’s what you do with it that counts……”

“Said the Bishop to the Actress………”

“I think it’s time we took a visit to the Fire Station…..”

“The Fire Station?”

“Yes, – and the Rail Station.”

“You must be joking……..”

“No, come on……”  And off we went.

“Yo, Mr Myagi……” said the Fire Station Officer jokingly.  Sensei was obviously a frequent visitor……  What was going on?

The Station Officer put the bells down and as all the Fireman came sliding down the pole and rushing out of the doors he shouted “Drill! drill!”  They took the engine out into the yard and commenced unrolling their hoses.

“One jet, ground floor level, 80 pounds per square inch” he shouted.  The firemen set up one hose and water started to jet out of the hose, it took two Fireman to control it with ease.

Sensei took me over to the jet.  “OK push your hand against it.”  The jet knocked me backward.  I never realised how powerful one of these jets could be

“Now cut your hand through it in the direction of the Firemen”.  I tried to cut my hand through it going against the flow at an angle of about 45 degrees and was again knocked back.

“Now cut through it at a 90 degree angle…..”  My hand was knocked away.

“I can’t see the point in this”, I bleated.  “It just goes to show that force wins every time.”

“Have patience…..”  said Sensei.  “Now try at 45 degrees away from the Fireman…….”  My hand slid through easily……

“That’s incredible…….  It didn’t require any effort at all…….”

“Exactly, when you understand the nature of energy, it isn’t really difficult at all.  Now think back to how you were trying to intercept the big guy’s energy………….”

“Not at the right angle.”

“Correct.  You were trying to “fight” it.”

“So that’s why you said don’t fight………….”

“Let’s go to the Rail Station.”  We thanked the Firemen and left them soaking each other with water like children.

When we arrived at the Station Sensei bought two platform tickets and we sat on a bench and watched a train arriving.

“OK so what now?  I asked.

“Patience…….” Said Sensei for the second time today.

As the train started to pull out of the station, Sensei pointed and said “How would you board the train?”

“What do you mean?”

“Would you run against the direction of the train?  Or stand still and try to get on it?”

“No – I’d run in the same direction as the train and board it as we were moving together…….”

“No competition, no fight, and size doesn’t really matter…… eh?”