Alberta Prairie Phoenix

 Sifu Rybak challenged us to go beyond out perceived limitations and get to do something we think we cannot.  At least this is what I heard... I chose to work on my flying kick and get to the point where I can do a flying kick while airborne.  I can think of many reasons (excuses?) why I do not already able to do it. The main one will be my fear from hurting my back. Both from the jump and the landing. So I will need to build up and get to the point where my body (and especially my back) is OK with that.

 One of the things I want to accomplish this year is to be able to drum a lion dance. I always think of myself as someone who has pretty bad coordination. But in the last year I was able to make very significant progress with drumming. I got laughed at few times... but I think I am getting to the point where I am 80% there. Need to fine tune all the small transitions and all the lion-drummer communication. 

 The banquet was good as always. Being in the organizing level of an event, I can always see the things that did not go right. But it was a good banquet. It is also a good opportunity to evaluate where you are and what you want to do. I was failing with making progress on numerous fronts. I have a lot of good reasons / excuses - work, health, mental health, too many things on my list, etc. I decided to tackle the "too many things in my list" and start focusing on one thing at a time. Started writing a list of what I want to do and very fast it turned to be 5 things at a time... not good. I am still trying to prioritize. Not to jump from one thing to another. I'm not there yet.

 It has been a very tough 14 (and counting) months since the October 7 attack on Israel. I've been feeling very lonely since.  Very few people at work offered their sympathies and support. No other friends or acquaintances (other than one neighbor) reached out. And even Canadian family relatives had a superficial approach to discussing this with me. The magnitude of the events. The horrific videos (and forever PTSD). The rising anti-Semitism in North America, Europe and specifically in Canada. All made me feel more alone.