Tag: martial arts

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Rules To Live By…

Steve Rowe

Some of Steve Rowe’s Rules Of Life – 1. Don’t make friends easily. 2. ALWAYS work on your mind and perspective 24/7. 3. Always pay your way and live within your means. 4. If you help somebody, do it because it’s right not to make them indebted to you. 5. People you’ve helped will often stab you in the back, don’t let it become your problem. 6. People you’ve taught will often never give you credit – mostly that’s a good thing because that kind of student rarely gets it right. 7. Judge everyone by their actions not their words. … Continue reading Rules To Live By…

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Inside Out

Steve Rowe

How do you want people to treat you? Then treat them the same way. You want respect? Then give it and earn it. You want people to see you as a good martial artist? Then work hard and become one. You want respect as a martial arts coach? Then act like one. You want to be treated as an adult? Then behave like one. You want the coach to teach you well? Then be a good student. I study people and most can’t see the obvious. They complain about their treatment, That they’re not treated with respect, That they’re not … Continue reading Inside Out

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I See You

Steve Rowe

I see you…. Because I meditate and practice neigong, I see you, I see the savage beast when the mask slips, Maybe only for a second, But I see you. I also see the angel, When you have pure altruistic compassion, When you really care; When your caring is free from fear or pity, When there is no desire for an end result, That’s when your angel is looking through your eyes. My unfettered mind see’s how you wear your body; The tension borne from fear, The bowed head, the lazy slouch, The jutting chin and darting eyes; The deepest … Continue reading I See You

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A Walk In The Woods

Steve Rowe

Today I went for a walk, Well, actually a shuffle; The ground was uneven, With 14 surgeries on my legs, I can barely move. Everyone passed me by, But I had the advantage; I could see everything they missed, I could hear what they didn’t, I could smell and taste what they couldn’t. I felt sorry for them; I had constant pain to let me know, That I was alive; I was grateful to walk, Grateful to be alive. I hadn’t smelled the earth for years, The moisture from the rain and river on my skin and tongue; The woody … Continue reading A Walk In The Woods

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Guns, Violent Crime & The Elephant In The Room

Steve Rowe

Every time I look at or read something about guns and violent crime I can’t help thinking about how blind we all are to the ‘elephant in the room’ – let me explain…. My first conscious presents as a child were a toy gun and toy soldiers, the games I used to play with other children revolved around fighting and ‘pretend’ killing, ‘you’re dead’ was the most common phrase. All the entertainment media I’ve ever watched has been around guns, shooting, explosions, fighting, and death. It was an integral part of my culture, I worked in security, I started martial … Continue reading Guns, Violent Crime & The Elephant In The Room

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Compassion And The Martial Arts

Steve Rowe

In my youth I was arrogant and violent before I discovered the Martial Arts – and as a result of that discovery I also went on to study Buddhism, Zen and Taoism.  It was through these studies that I found compassion.  In hindsight I think that my excitability, arrogance and violence was a result of being ’empathic’ and not knowing how to deal with it.  As an empathic child in a non empathic family and culture where ‘give him a slap’ was the answer to everything in a relationship and as I attended the roughest school in South London where … Continue reading Compassion And The Martial Arts

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The Softest Touch

Steve Rowe

  I am a ghost, a wraith; Passing through life with the softest touch. I own nothing and no-one; Anything bought belongs to the Earth; And any person loved is completely free. I am only here to learn; I stand on the line between life and death; Free to love, cherish and enjoy; To embrace pain and suffering; To understand how one creates the other. By not blundering, not ‘forcing’; But stepping back and yielding; Only using the softest guiding hand; To bring imbalance back to the Tao. Stiffness, clumsiness and ego; Trying to prevent or force intention; Only bring … Continue reading The Softest Touch

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Fighting Yourself

Steve Rowe

  In the Martial Arts we often talk about how ‘the biggest opponent we have to fight is the one inside of ourselves’ and that ‘when performing solo moves we must have an opponent in mind’ although I think the statements are self evident  I would like to put the two together and give it a bit of perspective. We are most likely to die of ill health. A good part of our health is our sanity and happiness, so emotional intelligence is an essential part or our daily training routine. We know how to do this through meditation and … Continue reading Fighting Yourself

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How Tai Chi Saved My Life

Steve Rowe

  After a double knee replacement I fell and severed 3 quadriceps on both legs, this went unnoticed for 4 years, then 2 x 5hr attempted and failed rebuilds.  My right leg became infected and I had another knee replacement with an antibiotic spacer and 3 months of intravenous antibiotics. Two years afterwards, that leg became infected again (I had been fighting the infection for the whole 2 years)  leading to 5 more surgeries including removal of the knee, another antibiotic spacer and eventually an arthrodesis (fusing the leg straight with an iron bar through the middle) and another 3 … Continue reading How Tai Chi Saved My Life

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Don’t Think – Feel…

Steve Rowe

  “If you work on your mind with your mind, how can you not be confused?” A very common problem with the students I teach. They know that they are stuck, they know that they are suffering as a result.  It’s all very well telling them to ‘think outside the box’ or to find the ‘infinite stillness within’ or as Bruce Lee would say “don’t think, feel” but if thinking is the tool that you’ve always used to problem solve, you’re stuck.  You can only work on your mind with your mind up to a point. And the mind is … Continue reading Don’t Think – Feel…