A message from Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Forum Members,
I wanted to take a few minutes to rant, complain, comliment and Kvetch a bit. Lets start with the obvious yet often overlooked truth;

Teaching is difficult. It is made even harder when one desires to do it well.

Can I get an "Amen" from the Choir?

The ten weeks of substitute teaching for another instructor at the Dwight D. Eisenhower recreation center has turned into nine months. On the positive side I am contiuing to learn. I hope the students are too. Also during that period of time all 14 students in the club have tested for higher rank and passed. One brown belt candidate failed but subsiquently retested and passed on her second attempt. I feel responsible for the students and genuinely care for them. During my time filling in we have had students face illness, deaths in their families, heart attacks and financial setbacks. Stuff happens. I find that it is still hard to make the time to train as I would like. The times I teach have become days I don't train. My weight is slowly creeping up. My wife and kids would like me around more than I 'am. The area in my training that is what I would consider my "growing edge" is as my teacher has challenged me is "to teach like I was taught". This include demaning more of the students. To get the most out of them he says I have to push them harder than they want to go. My teacher says " it's not about you, it's about the art". He says " You are too worried about being a nice guy. I don't care if people quit". I get to recieve these a$$ chewings both in public forums and private. Why am I doing this again? For the Money? nope. For the respect ? I had a 16 year old tell me last night " I'm not doin' 50 push ups" Sheesh. I wanted to pound his, I mean "my" head on the wall.

Can I get an "Amen"

Why do I contiue to do this? There are quite a few reasons I'm sure, some noble and others nearing pathetic. One step after the other I keep plodding on. It's not pretty. My sincere complements to the teachers out there that do it well. And those that are trying.


oldman

p.s. He did the push ups. [IMG]http://www.fightingarts.com/forums/ubb/wink.gif[/IMG]

So did I.




[This message has been edited by oldman (edited 03-22-2005).]

I do not have the literary ability to describe what that post made me feel. Just know that I had goosebumps.

If I had never heard of you or read any other posts by you, this one would have been enough to know that you are truly an honorable man. And that is always enough.

Page

Amen and hallelujah, brother!

I've wondered myself about the teaching vs. training part, but then you get those students that really want to learn, and for those people you keep on going back. Or maybe it's just to pass on that which has been given to you.

There was a two year period that I was driving 140 miles round trip to teach a class I had started before I relocated due to work. As the students were trying hard and coming regularly I kept teaching until one became accomplished enough to allow me to hand part of the class to him. I did it because I love the art and I made a commitment to the students. What would I have taught them if I had left before there was someone to take over?

When I first saw your post, Oldman, I thought you'd gotten into channeling. As one of the few here who remember when Ike was president, I was intrigued. Maybe he was going to follow up on his warning about the military-industrial complex with one on the military-industrial-conservative religious complex.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Ironfoot:
When I first saw your post, Oldman, I thought you'd gotten into channeling. As one of the few here who remember when Ike was president, I was intrigued. Maybe he was going to follow up on his warning about the military-industrial complex with one on the military-industrial-conservative religious complex.[/QUOTE]

Sorry to dissapoint Ironfoot. The only channeling my self imposed orthodoxy allows is with the remote. [IMG]http://www.fightingarts.com/forums/ubb/smile.gif[/IMG] I do feel a great freedom when it comes to letting others work through their religious complexes though.

oldman

[This message has been edited by oldman (edited 03-25-2005).]