Thebeardedjourneyman

The Importance of Posture

Everything we experience in life has the potential, if allowed, to teach us something. It may be something about ourselves, or others, or the way we are to view the world around us. Many times, however, the lesson isn’t entirely evident at the moment.

As time passes, though, we are often given opportunities to reflect and recognize the lessons we have learned and why they have become pivotal in a current season of need, trial, or difficulty.

Maintaining a learning posture can be challenging as it requires us to approach everything we experience, even the difficult times, with an inquisitive nature. While not easy, it is something that I have been intentionally focusing on as I grow older.

Something New

As many of you know, this recent health journey caught me entirely off-guard with its suddenness and severity. It is taking me time to come to terms with how close to death I came.

In this journey, however, something unexpected taught me an important lesson that I believe is one of the many critical things that helped carry me through this crisis.

Several months ago, a friend and colleague of mine, Ryan Gillies, invited me to join him at the Kanata Academy of Martial Arts to try out Brazilian Jiujitsu.

It was a fun and entirely awkward experience as I attempted to get my body to do things I had never before asked it to do. Not an easy task at 46. But after we were done, I was hooked.

There was something about this sport that was immediately appealing and that drew me into this community. After that class, I repeatedly went back time and time again to train. I loved it.

But it wasn’t all fun and games.

Lessons from Loss

Can I be honest?

As a white belt, I knew nothing, and as a result, in each class, as is the practice, I was partnered with a higher-level belt to train.

For part of the class, you learn one or two new skills. The moves are demonstrated several times by the coach, and then you are given the opportunity to practice them with your partner. Things moved slowly, and I tried to remember and take direction. This practice was difficult but nowhere near how challenging the next part of the lesson would be.

Drills.

The first time I heard my coach, Tyson, explain drills, it sounded easy enough. You see, for thirty minutes (broken down into 2-3-minute blocks), you and your partner assume one of three guard positions (closed, half and mount).

The goal of these drills is simple: keep the person in or escape that guard position. If you are successful, reset and do it again until the time is up.

I cannot overstate how difficult these drills were for me.

As a white belt, I have very few “tools” in my chest, and as a result, my attempts to escape or submit failed countless times; no matter how hard I tried, I would consistently lose.

At first, it was discouraging and even a little frustrating, but I remember Tyson sharing in one class that failure doesn’t matter; failure leads to learning, learning leads to growth, and growth leads to a greater understanding of how to handle future challenges. He explained that everyone, no matter what belt, fails and, subsequently, learns.

Why share this?

Unexpected Application

Simply put, my experience with Brazilian Jiujitsu prepared me for my fight against Necrotizing Fasciitis.

Each stage in this battle has been difficult, fraught with uncertainty and pain, and each time, I would say, through tears, that I couldn’t do it anymore. But when those words came, I would be prompted to remember the lessons I learned on the mat, and I would get back up and keep fighting, to be resilient and determined in the face of challenge.

The clock was ticking; I still had time.

More Than a Stripe

The lesson before the injury, my coach Tyson gave me my first stripe. It was a massive moment for me then, but as I have had time to think about it through the lens of my experience, I realize that it was more than just a stripe.

It symbolized the preparation I would need to face the most brutal battle of my life. The preparation that built within me perseverance in the face of challenge. Something I believe God ordained for me to begin to prepare me for the battle I faced in the hospital.

I cannot wait to get back to the club and continue learning, but until then, I will hold the lessons I learned leading up to that stripe close to my heart as I continue to face the many battles that lay before me in the weeks ahead – physical, mental and emotional.

A Shift in Perspective

And so for you, reader, whomever you are and whatever you face. Take time to reflect on the experiences you have and are having. Take time to reflect on how there might be moments of preparation in these experiences that God will use to help you journey and persevere through the trials and tribulations of life.

Shifting your posture or perspective this way takes work.

But it is worth it.

Because when you do, it enables you to view things (challenges, experiences, opportunities, etc.) less like an obstacle to overcome and more like an opportunity to learn.