On Greatness

A good martial artist will see a hit coming,

and dodge it by a mile;

A great one?

Will be missed by two inches.

That's something my sensei always used to say to us.

Not in quite the same way each time,

he wasn't a very eloquent man--

Now, I have really bad depth perception.

Anyone feel?

I fall down all the time, trip up the stairs at least once a week,

I can't park straight to save my life.

Basically, I'm a huge klutz.

Except,

I'm a lifetime martial artist.

Coming up on sixteen years' experience in three styles,

And I'm nineteen years old.

Now, granted, I didn't start when i was three,

couldn't even walk (well) at that point,

so I'm giving myself credit for the overlap.

Eleven years of Wado-ryu, four of Niseido,

and a year in Shorinkan.

I never plan to stop.

I've attended seminars with grandmasters,

spent hundreds of hours of my own time training,

and next year, I've been invited to Okinawa to train with the greats.

i moved across the country,

and the first thing i did, before even unloading my car,

was find a dojo.

But, according to the qualificiations of one of the most respected Wado instructors in Tennessee,

I will never be great.

Not because I don't kill myself weekly in training,

not because my form isn't good enough,

and certainly not because I can't hold my own in a fight.

But because my brain

is just a little bit stupid

when it comes to processing visual information.

I'm likely to avoid being hit by four inches,

or half of one.

Or maybe even a mile.

And if my depth perception,

and my absolute lack of hand eye coordination,

and my inability to pay attention in class,

and my depression,

and all my other demons

can't stop me from being great at the thing i am Passionate about--

Why should yours?

See, I've always thought that anyone who pressures you to judge greatness by anyone's standards but your own

Could go fuck themselves.

I am great.

Great because I've gotten farther than anyone (including myself)

(especially myseslf)

ever thought i would.

Great, because I don't fall down when I throw kicks anymore

Great, because I didn't want to die yesterday

Great, because a little girl laughed when i pretended to be hurt by her strikes last week

Great, because I finally figured out how to do one block properly in this new style;

Great.

Because I say so.