This lesson was made ever more clear in the months leading up to the 2011 IBJJF Pan Am Championships when our coach put the team through what we called "Death Workouts". These workouts consisted of 30-40 minutes of BJJ related drills back to back and in rapid succession and usually involved some type of running or calisthenic component prior to completing the drills followed by 30-40 minutes of live sparring with no breaks, no water, no nothing...except maybe death. And if you weren't dead (a fate none of us met thankfully) you certainly wished for a second that you could just stop feeling for a moment and the pain would be lifted from your body (or your mind depending on which tenet you ascribe to).
So now when faced with a real world situation where I am in the fight of my life, I am thankful I am conditioned to keep fighting. Had I not endured those months of what seemed like torture, I would not have the resolve to keep getting up despite being knocked on my ass of the umpteenth time. I would have quit. I wouldn't be here still fighting today. I don't have the comfort of the mats or the shared experience of my teammates now. I have to deal with these matters alone, without the comforts of the gym to console me, wipe off my tears or supply a soft place to land. There's just me and my opponent...one of us will be vanquished when its all said and done
The theme of today seems to be gratitude. In lieu of the Thanksgiving Holiday and all the talk of thanks over it, what I missed was gratitude for little things like being above ground, being given the opportunity to be a better me than the me who woke up this morning. I can't forget these little things as I trudge along through my life settling differences with the Universe on what now seems like a daily basis.
What I have come to learn is the Universe has a strong side control, is deadly with collar chokes and might knock you into next week if you're not paying attention.
No comments:
Post a Comment