My Advice on Prostate Cancer Treatment

There are some important personal experiences that I feel that I should share with you guys about the route to prostate cancer treatment. Firstly, if you can – get private health insurance that includes unlimited cancer treatment. On a blood test following my leg amputation I was found to have a high PSA count indicating prostate cancer. I was guided to a consultant who rubber gloved me and confirmed that I needed tests and treatment. I was told that:NHS treatment was as good and as fast as private treatment – not true.That my best option was surgery – also not … Continue reading My Advice on Prostate Cancer Treatment

Everyone Has A Story

As the government turns on people with disabilities, removing independence payments and most importantly social help of all kinds, no one can understand the full import of what becoming disabled means. We all have a different story and I’m lucky that I’m still able to work and support myself, with a lot of family, friends and students around me to help. Others are not so lucky. Having been an independent, fit, strong career martial artist for most of my life, becoming disabled and losing my leg meant that I lost 95% of my life. If asked if I would rather … Continue reading Everyone Has A Story

Entropy Of Life

EntropyFrom organised structure into chaos.You’re already dead.Death is infinite and assured.Life sits inside death.It’s finite and tentative.From the moment you’re born,You’re also dead.Life/death is yin/yangWithout death, life has no value. From young, healthy, attractive, nicely scented and succulent,You rot into a grey, dry, wrinkled,Old, invisible and ignored carcass,Smelling of piss and biscuits.From mindlessly leaping out of chairs,You go to the ‘Dawn Of Man’ routine to stand.Or slide from chair to wheelchair. Only young people say “if you’re lucky enough to get old”.When old, sick people hear of a ‘sudden death’, they think ‘lucky bastard’,Even if they don’t say it.The key … Continue reading Entropy Of Life

I Like Simple

I am a simple man.This is why I naturally gravitate to Taoism, Buddhism and Pantheism.I’m always looking for the bottom line.I don’t like clever or complicated.I don’t like deceit.I don’t like masks.I don’t like dogma.I don’t like robes.I don’t like temples and churches.I don’t like priests, vicars, bishops or popes.I don’t like flowery hands and embroidered feet.I dont like arrogance, false confidence or bluster.I like straight talk.I like patience, tolerance, kindness and compassion.I like unity, harmony, community and support.I rely on my gut, my instincts.I know a wrong ‘un when I see them.They pit one against the other.They rely on … Continue reading I Like Simple

Why Should I Be ‘Happy’?

Why should I be happy? One thing that’s always intrigued me is the human pursuit of happiness. Every quote, meme, lifestyle and business guru advert is about how to be ‘happy’, yet with only a little bit of examination we can see that to obtain and maintain the ‘happiness’ being shovelled to us is impossible. It’s an illusion that society’s manipulators captivate our souls with to keep us unfulfilled and forever chasing their carrot. Life consists of order and chaos and we need the wisdom to accept and deal with both aspects. All the time that we’re imprisoned in this … Continue reading Why Should I Be ‘Happy’?

Waking Up Our Chi

Waking up the chi…. The most important part of the day. To get the energy working and vibrant we have to exercise the spine, core and vagus nerve together. Using the mind, breath, emotions and Tai Chi movements, we meditate, calm the system first and then open, close, stretch, compress, twist and release the three together firing up the neural system and releasing the good hormones into the system. It’s an incredible feeling, opening all the cavities in the body and pumping and manipulating them, the stretch goes from tiptoe, to head and fingertips like the ‘yawning stretch’ and release … Continue reading Waking Up Our Chi

Your Body Talks To You

Your body is constantly talking to you. The problem is that if you only think and hear in words, you can’t hear it. It talks to in the same way that your dog, pet or baby does, you know what they want by their ‘body language’ and if your senses are only transmitting outwards, you can’t hear your own. When you turn your senses inward in meditation or training and learn to feel your body from the inside, it talks to you. This is important for your physical, emotional and mental health. Normally we don’t listen until it shouts in … Continue reading Your Body Talks To You

Loneliness

Some people see everything differentThey can’t understand why others can’t see the sameOthers can’t understand why they are the way they areLike oil and water they can’t mixIt’s a lonely place when everyone misunderstandsWhen they don’t talkWhen they’re just being themselvesOthers think they’re being awkwardThe truth is they’re born that wayThey can’t help itThey don’t mean itThey can’t be differentThey just need toleranceUnderstandingCommon groundThis is the role martial arts can playIt’s called inclusion. Continue reading Loneliness

There Is No ‘Us & Them’

There is no ‘us’ and ‘them’. Because we have tribal origins it’s easy for people to be divided, fear, anger and hate engendered and we then don’t see those pulling the strings. We have the power at the polls, but even then we’re asked to vote for one party against another and most voters don’t even know the policies that they’re voting for, they’re just voting out of fear and tribalism. We should have grown out of the man made divisions of ‘them and us’, the illusions of boundaries, countries, religions and cultures, we should not see differences but that … Continue reading There Is No ‘Us & Them’

Explore Your Darkness

Do you feel that if you surrender to your darkness that you won’t be able to find your way back? Do you repress and try to ignore it? If you’re always trying to be happy instead, you’re not happy – and the lurking darkness is permeating your soul in a negative way. We all know the ‘positivity’ people always trying to convince themselves and those around them that they are happy and positive but that veneer is thin and the tortured soul behind is obvious. The darkness needs to be explored and understood as it’s the balancing factor to the … Continue reading Explore Your Darkness