小虎燕 - Small Tiger Sparrow Form

Here is a video of me performing the small tiger form. This was back in October so I am late in getting it up. You can tell the form still needs some cleaning up but it's nothing I'm embarrassed about.

Announcement

I've made an official decision to run the Taipei Marathon. I'm going to be living in Taiwan for a year, as a former runner it would not be right to neglect this opportunity. I'll also have to soon stop referring to myself as a "former" runner.

Me running the Northeast Regionals for BU (the only Varsity Cross Race I ran) 10k through Van Cortland State Park in about 34:08

I've enjoyed two Kung Fu performances (for some mediocre pictures and videos please check my picasa account - link of the left) so far so it is time for me to train my body in a different way for a little while. That's not to say I will not be studying Kung Fu in the park anymore, it's just to say that while I do this my legs will pretty much be spent and it just won't be my primary focus for a short time.

The date is December 20. Given my current fitness level this should be enough time. For sure I have more time to devote to training than when I ran the Boston Marathon in 2003. That being said I intend to beat my time.

The Gauntlet has been thrown, now to work through the Chinese registration website.

Life’s about the Journey

Life is about the Journey. I was a runner. I won several high school races including some big invitationals and even our sectional championship. I set my high school track record for the 3.2km (2 mile). As a freshmen and sophomore I was not only the track team’s lead distance runner but also our number one Tennis player.

I feel sorry for someone who lists their high school accomplishments out like this and speaks with a great deal of pride. This short list of sports victories has little meaning. But my time in high school was not a waste, I can tell you what did have meaning: an intense and diligent training schedule that lasted the entire four years of high school, running 45 weeks out of the year, waking up at 5 am to run through the cold rain and snow, running through windy snowstorms, running down unknown trails, running on my own, desperately working to bring a greater sense of meaning to my life. This is what meant something. I’m not that tall and only have so much natural talent so I had to work that much harder to win those races. Winning those races, creating that list above meant I had to struggle through the training. The struggle that created the list, that is what has meaning.

Winning those races was nothing more than superficial compared to the training, but it also gave the training direction and a purpose. Without the goals I set for myself I would not have had any need for the training. Life is about the journey, but a worthwhile journey requires a worthwhile goal.

Fast-forward to today and the time I am spending in Taiwan. I have a very real and meaningful goal: the pursuit of fluency in Mandarin and to study as much modern culture as I can. These goals are leading me on a new journey. I am meeting friends and getting thrown into awkward situations. I am able to view this culture and the world in a new way.

In contrast with most of the other foreigners I meet, my goals are very different. Typically their reason for leaving their own country is an escape. Life wasn’t great back in their respective country, family troubles, girl problems, and crappy jobs without a clear or bright future... so they came to Taiwan for a change. They have come here for an escape.

Escape is an end. Escape is the goal. Once you have arrived in the foreign country you have already satisfied your goal. They no longer have an objective; they no longer have a direction or a compass. Instead they are left drifting; they are controlled by the external forces that they encounter.

Typically these people don’t learn the language, not past the most basic and childish level. They are exposed to only one side of the culture and are never actually able to immerse themselves to a point learning. They end up forming a community with other foreigners and isolate themselves. Their interaction with the locals is limited to English speakers. They are severely limited. Most men end up indulging in women and never really accomplishing anything significant. The journey that is their life has no depth; they are just being guided by the waves that are their most basic desires.

By resisting the superficial pleasures I’ve been able to develop a lot of real friendships with a variety of people. I meet very few people my own age but through my job (teaching English) I’m able to study how children behave and grow up in modern Taiwan. I get to study Taiwanese parenting culture.

By studying Shaolin Kung Fu I’m able to associate with the older generation. The only way this is even possible is with my Chinese since they can’t speak English. My interaction with them grants me a view into a piece of Taiwan that very few foreigners would have a chance to experience. I am daily acquiring invaluable knowledge, knowledge much more valuable than the superficial fun and games that most foreigners enjoy.

Life is about the journey, no, life is a journey. If your journey lacks a goal then it lacks direction. You are as good as a person drifting in a small boat out at sea with no paddle. A goal, a compass, a direction – this is your oar. You don’t necessarily have to reach your goal, but you now have the ability to take control of your life for yourself, you have the ability to add meaning to your life and truly live well. The meaning of life is to live.