Tae Kwon Do

[elayne]

Well my brother, Jon came over and stayed at my house last night cause his wife left him. I was thinkin' "good ridance", b/c she never loved him and was horrible, but I kept my happiness to myself and poured him some Jim Beam. :)

I remembered Kim's suggestion that yoga might help Jon's post traumatic stress syndrome. So I asked him, if we went together would he be willing to try it? He said he didn't want to do yoga, but had been thinking he would like to take Tae Kwon Do. I think that is a fair compromise, so I'm gonna sign us up!
I'm so excited, b/c I have missed him sooo much, ever since he went to Iraq, and now I get a scheduled time for us to be together... YAYY! Plus it will be beneficial to both of us.

Hi - Yah! he he Guess I gotta get me some of those cool pjs now.

[mariecstasy]

So is he going to be staying at your house for a while?

You are so generous with your time. What a good little bloomer wearer you turned out to be;) hahahahah...I laughed so hard when I read that.

Congrats. Your brother probably needs that time with you as well. Might help him move into himself some more.

[elayne]

He will probably be over for dinner often, but he has his own house as of now. Last night I wanted him to stay b/c we had been drinking.

LOL thanks. I don't really feel like I'm being generous, this is for me too. :) Kevin didn't seem too keen on the idea, but I didn't ask his permission and I get bull-headed if I think he is trying to be bossy.

Yes, I am hoping this will help him in that way. I would do anything to take that haunted look from his eyes, it just breaks my heart. Last night he broke down crying (which never happens), b/c two of his friends he fought with in Fallujah died last week. One died of complications in the hospital and the other committed suicide. One of them had dinner at my house before, and as I was going to sleep last night I just had a picture in my mind of his big grin. I cried for the loss of such a sweet young man, even though I didn't know him well.

[mariecstasy]

Ouch....what a disheartening bit of news. He sure has been through a lot.

SO what does he feel about the whole war? I know he is changed from it but does he have some pretty strong opinions about us being over there.

LMAO!!!! Good on you. I hate feeling like someone is telling me what to do as well. Pisses me off......grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. I get pretty fiesty and defensive.

[elayne]

I know, it stinks! He looked me in the eyes with tears rolling down his face and said, "They're all gone damn it, my team are all dead but me!"

Oh he definitely feels conflicted about us being there! He is proud of the excellence that his team exhibited in battle, and the good that is being accomplished as far as infrastructure. Then, at the same time, he will say war is hell and it aint worth the lives of so many good men.

[HoneySuckleBlue]

Wow, man, whatta week. It is so wild that you were just talking about wanting more time with him. I hope it does his heart good to be around people the love him while he is grieving.

[elayne]

I know! I don't think that was coincidence. :)

[mariecstasy]

How is he taking his wife leaving?

[elayne]

Well its tough, he spent the whole weekend at our house, and I have been working on damage control with his self esteem. She really did a number on him, and at a time when he was especially vulnerable because of the brain injury. I'm really fighting the urge to have hatred in my heart towards her.
He has known for quite some time that she doesn't love him, he was staying with her because his little one yr old daughter means the world to him. Its killing him that he hasn't been able to see the baby!

Saturday we went to the dojo together and signed up for the classes. We watched one of the classes and it looks like a blast! They said that they will work around his injuries so I was relieved about that. We have an appointment for Tues evening.

Then I drove him everywhere we could think of to find her, so that he could see the baby, but no luck.

[HoneySuckleBlue]

Man, that stinks she is being so immature and thinking only about herself. Children need to know both parents even if they do not get along.


It is great that you two are getting to spend time together though, and the class sounds exciting. What kind of stuff will they have to work around? Did I miss tha part? Sorreh if you already said it, I am kinda loopy lately.

[elayne]

You aren't loopy in my opinion! I don't think I ever told you about all of his injuries. From the bomb blast in Iraq, he has the brain injury, nerve damage in both hands and one knee. His wife's grandpa shot him in the groin, with a shotgun, about a year ago. So he has had alot of reconstructive surgery on that area and his ability to kick will be limited for quite some time, I imagine.

[HoneySuckleBlue]

Holy crap....what did the grandpa shoot him for??!

[elayne]

That is the million dollar question! Worst part is he got away with it b/c Jon's wife lied to the cops, claiming it was self defense. They were both drunk, but Jon said there wasn't even an argument. Mom thinks his wife was in on it, that they wanted the life insurance, but that is speculation. I tell you what, that is the only time in my life I seriously wanted to murder someone! When Jon was in ICU and we didn't know if he'd make it, I wanted that old man dead soooo bad.

[lode]

Glad you're around to help your brother out in his time of need.

I think some kung fu is very therapeutic. Ask him what his goals are in martial arts. Let me know what he says, and what city you live in, and I can find the best school.

Take care of him Elayne. :D

[mamaKCita]

gawd. that's the most awful fucking story i've ever heard. i'm glad he has you to lean on. my dearest cousin came home from his two iraq tours so changed, so self-destructive and his wife was a vicious, abusive twat. he was so angry with her one night, about to go back to iraq in about a month after black hawk training, and he hit the back of a taxi going over 100mph on his motorcycle. he died instantly. i was planning on visiting him soon...just not enough time, sieze the moments and don't let them go.

[mariecstasy]

Oh Wow, Elayne...sure miss alot when I am not here. Yeah, you never gave the injuries. That's really tough.

I already told you that you are a saint. You really are. You might not feel like it when you are doing things but not everyone steps up to the challenge.

How does your husband and children respond to him?
With his brain injury...is his speech slurred?

I cannot believe his wife and her grandfather. Don't worry because karma is going to knock them like a son of a biatch.

[HoneySuckleBlue]

Man, y'all go through some serious chit.
KC you are so right mama, my husband missed saying goodbye to his mom before she died and he was just devastated...it was so hard to see him with his loss. I am glad you are spreading that message.

I would have wanted to kill as well elayne, just dang. What is wrong with people?

[sylvanlightning]

Well my brother, Jon came over and stayed at my house last night cause his wife left him. I was thinkin' "good ridance", b/c she never loved him and was horrible, but I kept my happiness to myself and poured him some Jim Beam. :)

I remembered Kim's suggestion that yoga might help Jon's post traumatic stress syndrome. So I asked him, if we went together would he be willing to try it? He said he didn't want to do yoga, but had been thinking he would like to take Tae Kwon Do. I think that is a fair compromise, so I'm gonna sign us up!
I'm so excited, b/c I have missed him sooo much, ever since he went to Iraq, and now I get a scheduled time for us to be together... YAYY! Plus it will be beneficial to both of us.

Hi - Yah! he he Guess I gotta get me some of those cool pjs now.Yoga, or some gentle stretching is beneficial for anyone...
that would be great regardless and I'm sure Tae Kwon Do or any martial art would include Tao Yin or
warm-up exercises as part of the class. I'm excited ya'll will be able to experience that together. :)

I've always like Kimonos, personally.

http://www.cyber-materia.com/images/kimono-kimono.jpg

[lode]

TKD is Korean, where as kimonos are purely a Japanese (and non martial, save Kendo) item.

And yeah, any martial art should teach proper streching and breathing as warmups.

If you want to see the best martial arts uniforms IMHO, look at some wu shu uniforms.

http://www.chopshopkenpokarate.com/images/kung_fu_uniform.jpg

[sylvanlightning]

Gotcha, the Kimono flash was a random thought brought more about by the mention of pjs than tkd; on second thought its almost winter, so unless ya'll have a well heated space I'd lean tword flannel or a plush comfy knee-length robe... come to think about it, its time to get out of this long sleeve shirt and blue cords into a warm robe.

You seem to know your arts, Sifu, Xiexie.

[lode]

Do you speak mandarin Sylvan?

[sylvanlightning]

Very little, I'm sure if I immersed myself it would become more natural;
enough to be somewhat respectful of the ancient cultural gifts China has indirectly shared.

Imho, Scholar Warrior is a Sifu, this is a post from his thread: 'Pathless Path.'

http://www.hipforums.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2751397&postcount=11

[lode]

I'm fond of Daoism. I use Daoism as a metaphor for my own philosophical beliefs. I find the poetry and symbolism extremely useful.

That book looks interesting. I may check it out.

Thanks. :D

[sylvanlightning]

Hey, great to get to know you a little better.

My friend, Sifu Scotty, is coming over 11/29 to teach Arianna. She so so excited about learning some of the 5 animal Shaolin Gung-fu.... what a blessing to start when only 5. :)

This was the first standing Chi-gung posture I learned... still love it.

Wu Chi:

http://www.touchoftao.com/taichistandingarticle.htm

[lode]

5 was the age I started training in TKD. For the past 7 years I've been training in Burmese kickboxing (lethwei). I'm moving to Florida next week to start a position instructing kickboxing in Ft. Lauderdale. :D

Is Arianna your daughter? She is very blessed. I would love to learn some Shaolin wu shu. :D

Take care friend Sylvan.

[sylvanlightning]

Awesome, imho, early youth is the best age to begin training the the fire arts.
Arianna feels like my own but she is in fact Mariecstacys' only daughter.
My daugther, Sylvianna (age 11), has trained only in hatha yoga and a bit of T'ai Chi.

http://groups.msn.com/NeiWaiChiaKungFu/historyofthemasters.msnw (http://groups.msn.com/NeiWaiChiaKungFu/historyofthemasters.msnw)

Although not a Sifu, I have had the honor to have learned for many years from La Su Sunyata Saraswati
& am personal friends of both him and those he has trained as a Sifu.

I have always been wary of titles and have never felt like I earned any more than being a simple instructor or friend.

Bright Blessings to you on your way & 'Congrats' on the instructors position ~~*

[lode]

Thanks a lot friend.

Huo Yuanjia has always been a big hero of mine. :D

It's good that your positively influencing all your young family. (biological or otherwise)

[elayne]

Thank you everyone, ya made me get weepy! I must have needed to talk about it.


KC ~~ I am so sorry about your cousin, that is tragic. You are right about seizing the moments!

Marie ~~ I ain't no freakin' saint! lol But thanks for being a Sweetie. :) No his speech is good, just some holes in short-term memory. Kevin and the girls love Jon, anybody would, he is sweet and funny. The worst thing I can say about him is he sucks at picking women! He is a psycho magnet I guess.

Kim ~~ Poor Rich, that would be terrible!

Yeah some people you can't even understand their whole mindset. I mean greed and laziness as a way of life, I wouldn't be able to live with myself!


Andrew ~~ So you have trained in which martial arts? That is so cool about Arianna!

Iode ~~ Thanks, its nice to meet you! We signed up for classes with Shihan Roger Jarrett in St Albans WV. He seemed like a great person, our first lesson is tonight and I'm stoked! Good luck to you in your teaching!

[mariecstasy]

Yeah, i am super excited for Arianna. Its so up her alley!

Ok, you aren't a saint but you sure do have a big open heart and do alot for your family. I have a lot of respect for that.

[Jay-Jay]

now he can roundhouse kick his enemies, just like Chuck Norris!!!!

[HoneySuckleBlue]

Arianna is gonna have a blast, that's just too cool. What a great life y'all have goin':)

[elayne]

Arianna is so young she could be a black belt by high school! :) Then she could be intimidating to overeager teenage boys... lol. When I came home all excited about it last night, my girls asked if they can take it too. We told them they can but they will need to decide if they want it more than some of their other lessons, b/c we can't afford to do it all.

We both had so much fun last night. Jon shocked my socks off with some of his kicks, his groin is healed better than I thought! YAY! :hurray: Of course he made it look easy, b/c he had some of that in special forces training. I was just tickled to death to see him smiling so much!

[mariecstasy]

You made my day with your story:D I am so excited for the two of you. What a wonderful thing to be thankful for at your Thanksgiving blessing.

[sylvanlightning]

I'm excited, for Arianna.... less than a week. :)

Elayne, I trained in: Tibetian White Crane T'ai Chi & Chi Gung, 9-Fire Dragon Pa-kua, Shaolin 5 Animal (Tiger, Leopard, Crane, Snake & Dragon) & Ching Lung Tao 8 Animal Gung-fu, Hsing Yi & Empty Force for defense and agility training;


regardless of the rich diversity of the external or fire styles, which I was graced to participate in, most of my sparkle came from the water styles... Meditation, Chi-Gung, Nei-Gung & Shen-Gung. What a beautiful way: guiding energy, on the breath throught the inner meridians. Awareness sparkles like jewels.

[HoneySuckleBlue]

That's so cool:)

[elayne]

Elayne, I trained in: Tibetian White Crane T'ai Chi & Chi Gung, 9-Fire Dragon Pa-kua, Shaolin 5 Animal (Tiger, Leopard, Crane, Snake & Dragon) & Ching Lung Tao 8 Animal Gung-fu, Hsing Yi & Empty Force for defense and agility training;


regardless of the rich diversity of the external or fire styles, which I was graced to participate in, most of my sparkle came from the water styles... Meditation, Chi-Gung, Nei-Gung & Shen-Gung. What a beautiful way: guiding energy, on the breath throught the inner meridians. Awareness sparkles like jewels.
I don't know enough to understand what all of that means, but it sounds fascinating and beautiful! I'm going to look up inner meridians.
I do love learning the movements and form, although I feel so awkward right now. My teacher said that awkward feeling will soon be gone as my body gets used to the discipline.

[HoneySuckleBlue]

Did you start with a bunch of other people or are you joining a running class Elayne?

[elayne]

Its a running class, a mix of all levels of skill. I like my teacher's relaxed attitude. There is no pressure, he just helps you do as much as you want. For example, some of the young teenage boys are hardcore and serious, so he meets them where they are at in focus and challenges them more intensely. Then with me, he is patient, just encouraging more from me gently.

[HoneySuckleBlue]

He sounds like a good teacher :) I love when they are fluid and dynamic like that.

[mariecstasy]

good for you. What a joy. Is your bro still rocking it?

[HoneySuckleBlue]

Did Arianna start her lessons?

[mariecstasy]

Unfortunately not yet. Scotty was unable to make it to our house due to an accident near by....he had to turn around and go home since he had no cell phone to find another way.

So this Thursday.

She was so sad about it too. I went into her room to check on her and Andrew was sitting on her bed with her...she was cuddled up to him with tears flowing down her face as he read her a book with his arm around her. I looked at them and felt such a warm glow that Andrew is her father. Granted not in blood but in every single thing he does.

Sometimes he gets upset that I don't extend that same compassion to Sylvi. I know he does....rather he gets concerned...but if he would watch, i don't with Arianna either. I have to really stretch my limits and boundaries to sooth another or to allow another to sooth me. For him it is absolutely natural. Good thing we are both there to keep balance in the house:D

[HoneySuckleBlue]

That is awesome that the children have his influence in that area and that you get to see it modeled. We all get just what we need to grow into our full potential. So sad she was dissapointed, but that kid is a tough cookie and should be a pro at handeling that eventually. Hopefully things will work out this week.

[sylvanlightning]

I hope so too :) Has a great chance of being an important life memory for Arianna.

[elayne]

Yes, that will probably enrich her self image as well. I think my girls are going with me tonight, not sure about Hannah, she may have to do it after basketball season is over. Abby gave up cheerleading for it - Whoo hoo!!! I hated the cheerleading, some of the squad were total brats and some of the Moms annoyed me to death! Becca is bringing her best friend, b/c their joined at the hip... lol.

[oldwolf]

Sylvan,
this may be a bit out of line...you are present in the situation and so have much better view of the whole picture.... - with all you've learned about moving energy and the preparations you've had to bring this to others, why not help her yourself and teach her some wu style moving the energy.
we used to do "honey" movements and the shifting sand weight walk with the moving ball of energy. To help her process this toward her own challenge with handling out of balance emotions .... you are capable my brother and could this be part of your calling that you need to move toward - especially with children.

taken with a grain or 2 of salt to season and know that everyone is capable of being totally erroneous in their thinking...no matter how right on it may sound
loving you all...honoring each your special Path

Blessings

Namaste

[sylvanlightning]

Those are great ideas, GoodSir. Shanti & Namaste

I've adopted the current stance of being a friend and buddy and do hope we will be able to practice what she has learned together. As Marie says, it is exciting for her to have weekly visits, from a teacher. It is hard to be a teacher and a lover or father figure or any other role you wish to mix, concurrently, yet friends are always held in high regard and thus their consistent presence is even more penetrating than an occasional brilliant discourse or lesson. Yes I will help, in any way I can, anyone I can. Arianna is currently wanting to learn some animal fire style Kung-fu... this is not my specialty, yet should she want to learn moving through honey or filling the body with white light, I've got a few favorites to show her. Starting with foundations, the physical, getting in touch with animal spirits and getting into the body.

So Elayne, did your girls go with you tonight? I'm so glad ya'll are getting to do something awesome together. :)

[elayne]

We didn't get to go, b/c I had trouble with my Jeep. We thought of cramming in Kevin's truck, but there were five of us counting Becca's friend, so yeah that was a bummer.
We can go tomorrow night though!

[HoneySuckleBlue]

That stinks, glad you get to make it up though.


Do you know what is the matter with your jeep?

[elayne]

I think he said heater core?? I dont know.
I can put gas in it, check the oil, and change a tire, that sums up my vast knowledge of motor vehicles.

[HoneySuckleBlue]

Did he get it running for you?

[sylvanlightning]

Oooooo Ahhhhh cool sig pic ;)

So did Marie tell you what happened last Thursday?

[HoneySuckleBlue]

I don't think so, I've been absorbed with Jessies room I hav'nt been on much. Did your friend make it?

[sylvanlightning]

Yep and Arianna had a blast... she was a bit shy at first but warmed up quickly when they started to conspire, in her secret clubhouse, about attacking me with each of the five animals. She enjoyed learning tiger, leopard, crane, snake and dragon... Sifu Scotty is convinced that she is a leopard spirit due to her agility, sneakiness and mischievous nature. :)

[HoneySuckleBlue]

That sounds like so much fun and just perfect for her:) I hope you guys get the chance to see the Golden compass. I took the girls on saturday and it reminded me of Arianna because every one had their Daemons, or animal spirits walking beside them. Gini just adored the movie and both girls left wishing they had their animals spirits beside them so they could love and pet them. Gini thinks she'd have a cougar spirit.


I am so glad for your influence in Arianna's life. Has she been practising her animals since Scotty left?

[mariecstasy]

She has been actually. She loves attacking Andrew:D

Well Arianna has taken on one of Gini's actions. She raises her hand next to her head and shakes it at ya....just like Gini does. I cannot see her do it without thinking of your daughter!!

Oh wow, I didn't know he thought she had a leopard spirit. What is the difference between it and a tiger, energetically?

[HoneySuckleBlue]

I remember Jessie attacking Phil when he first moved down here and she was about five. He takes some kinda white swan ninjitsu or something, heck if I can keep all those names straight...but anyway it's too cute thinking of arianna doing the same:)

[mariecstasy]

Well Arianna has decided that she is going to be a super hero so she needs to learn to defend herself and everyone else. So Andy gets the brunt of it all. It's quite funny watching them interact.

I remember when I was in Maryland and was still in the state of not knowing whether moving down here was the best for her...I wondered if Andy would be able to play with her and chase her and be a kid instead of the super duper serious, deep stuff that he offers at times. I was genuinely concerned about that. But now I love watching their relationship evolve so very much. He is a huge blessing in her life. Thank god too because her dad is a slacker.

[HoneySuckleBlue]

Is John still MIA or have you guys talked at all?

I am so glad your concerns were unfounded and that they are both getting playtime in. Arianna is such a little fireball, I don't know how anyone could resist playtime with her.