Test

Last night, I had my level 6 test in Jeet Kune Do; two other people tested for level 2. As usual, it started with an utterly exhausting workout, so that everything we did would reflect how we had trained. (There's no stopping to remember moves in a fight.) Late in the evening, my sifu was running me through some "combat freestyles": He played an attacker, coming at me in a variety of ways, and it was my job to disable my attacker. ("Disable" is a euphemism for "leave on the ground screaming or unconscious". Though of course we try hard to not actually hurt our training partners.)

For his fifth attack, my sifu strode quickly toward me, pushing his finger toward my face, bellowing, "You better leave! Get out of here, now! Get out!" There I was, exhausted, performing a drill whose sole object was to disable one's opponent, and keenly aware that I could trivially take his finger, bend it back, and force him to the ground. Instead, without any hesitation, I threw my hands up in a placating gesture, backed away as quickly as he came at me, and said, "Okay, okay! I'm out of here! I'm gone!"

He stopped, put his hands down, gave me this beaming, pleased-as-punch smile, and said, "Good!"

Today, I hurt all over. But at least I'm a level 6 who hurts all over.