This is directly related to Kung Fu. I struggle with the difference of being a parent and being a teammate. To be more specific, I am a parent of a Kung Fu student. Even more specifically, I am a parent of a fellow teammate, in my class, at the same belt level. This can certainly be a struggle, a battle of wills, which one to be, at the right time.
They say it takes a village to raise a child. We have been very fortunate to have our village be Silent River Kung Fu. From the age of just before 3 years old and fast forward 13 years. Hard to believe. We have also been very fortunate that our child has chosen his Kung Fu time and time again. When it came time to choose which extra curricular activity to stay in for time constraints, he chose Kung Fu. Always. (And a good thing, or ‘parenting’ would definately have come into play lol). I am not saying other sports are not important, but Kung Fu is not just a sport. It is a lifestyle. I cannot think of something better to give your child to lead a better life, and be a better human. You want your child to be a good person, to be a viable, self sustaining adult. Kung Fu certainly helps to provide that, and more. And now, being a junior instructor, it is also providing the tools to him to be a leader.
Parenting, and being a teammate at the same time can be a struggle. Where is the line? What is helping, what is holding him back? He may very soon surpass me, and earn his black belt. Will this be the difference to help this struggle? I will always be his parent, and always provide guidance, no matter what age. I will always try to be my best for him, with him, and help him to be his best. The subtle questions - is this completed? Is that done? will most likely continue, I am a parent after all. But a parent that also wants him to choose his own path, make his own decisions, and be successful with those choices. We never want our children to make mistakes but they also provide learning opportunities. Opportunities that may not come about without setbacks. It is a struggle to let those mistakes happen, and not to guide them in a different direction.
I have been very fortunate to have my boys at my side through my Kung Fu journey, but it can very difficult to separate those journeys. It can be difficult to distinguish the individual journeys. I can only hope I have been a teammate at the right times, and backed off the parenting side of it, when that was needed as well. This is my journey, as well as his. Proud parent, proud teammate, and couldn’t be more proud of the young man we have all raised. I’m sure the struggle will continue as we navigate our journeys. I can only hope that enough has been provided for him to make the right decisions, the choices that will further his life in a positive way.
