It seems to be a time for trying work in new spaces. I forgot to set the alarm last night, so I didn’t get to do five golden coins or the form until after I got to school. Then I had to wait until a free period later in the day, and do the form in the theater during a lull in the practice schedule for the kindergarten play.
Actually, they’re getting the set ready, so the kindergartners are practicing the play in their classroom, and the room is filled with furniture and milk crates and stumps. Working around all this additional material was an interesting challenge, because sometimes I couldn’t put my foot down where I wanted to, or do the Snake Creeps Down posture in the part of the room where it should have been.
Dealing with challenge and difficulty, and both mobile and moving obstacle, is a critical part of studying a martial art, and it’s likely vital to develop the necessary resilience and acceptance that the obstacles are what they are. Deal with them. Accept the obstacles as part of normalcy. You’re never going to have a completely clean or clear space in which to work, and it’s never going to be the perfect Temple or Dojo, with the Perfect Master and the Perfect Practice.
Do the work anyway.
At the same time, help your students learn to do the work effectively and from a mindset of resilience.
