Gratitude

On Thursday at work we had a speaker give a presentation and discussion about wellness, self-care, and honouring grief. During the presentation the speaker asked us what sort of things we did to deal with the stress and grief that comes along with doing a job like ours, and immediately my mind went to kung fu. Some people in the discussion answered “sports” and elaborated that it was very helpful to have an activity where there is no room to focus on anything else while the were playing and that it was a great way to disconnect from the stress of work and have a way to “turn their brain off’.

I completely agreed with them, but their comments gave me more appreciation for kung fu than I have felt in a while. Not only am I incredibly lucky to have something to completely take up my focus as soon as I engage in it like they described, but it is also something that comes with an incredible community, a way of thinking, and way of living that gives me the tools to become the healthiest version of myself, physically and mentally. Walking the path of Mastery, the idea of mindful incremental progression, and all the lessons of discipline, respect, and hard work. 

We have quite a geriatric collection of animals at our facility due to the incredible care all the keepers have provided over the years, which has allowed them the privelage of old age. But this also means that in caring for so many elderly animals I have faced a great deal of loss in the relatively short time since I became a zookeeper. And I know for a fact that I wouldn’t have been able to handle it if I was not in kung fu. Knowing that I have that safe space at the kwoon, knowing that I have my instructors, my team, and the school as a whole to be there, supporting me in way they probably don’t even realize fills me with gratitude. 

In the past few days I have been considering this gratitude and it made me realize that I may not have even been able to be a zookeeper if it weren’t for kung fu. Without it I wouldn’t have had the confidence to apply in the first place, without it I wouldn’t have the faith that I could develop the knowledge or skills or eye-for detail that I saw in all of the senior keepers, without it I wouldn’t have had the strength to do the hard work it takes to care for these animals day in and day out. 

I’m so glad I never had to find out what my life would have looked like without kung fu. 

Current Total

Should Be At

Push-ups

9444

11109

Sit-Ups

9865

11109

Hand Form

73

206

Weapon Form

102

206

Blogs

7

10

Sparring

61

206

AOK

179

206

Steps

616

319

Repair Relationship

6

10

Mastery Blogs

1

5

Digital Journal

3604

Words

Jaw Exercises

76

35

1-on-1's

6

10

Comments

  1. YitzikApril 13, 2025 at 8:40 AM

    This blog needs to be framed and placed on the wall…

    ReplyDelete

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