The Puzzle

One difficult transition I have had to make at Maury's Kung Fu is to be patient when it comes to the gaining of the knowledge and skills. On first joining I used to regularly corner Sifu Sarah and bombard her with questions about kung fu and ask to be corrected in my stances and forms. After I moved on from the beginner class it became clear that this was no longer appropriate. The approach of the school is to teach you what you need to know and allow you to slowly develop the finer points yourself. Once you get to a certain point which can only be achieved through development in your own time as well as in class you are guided to the next level. As everyone picks it up at different times this could be quickly for some and it could take a long time for others. In the last class the key message was that you shouldn't be getting frustrated when it is slow coming. Like a baby learning to walk, some take 9 months, some a year and there is no point getting frustrated with your child if your friend's kid is walking at 9 months and your kid isn't. It is a journey of self discovery with guidance from the Sifus. The alternative prevents us from reaching into our own selves and make those baby step discoveries and self corrections, making us reliant on the teacher for our development. Maury's way is empowering, slower and more frustrating but more effective in the long term.

Another point of frustration for students is learning a variety of movements and approaches without understanding how it all fits together. Sifu Maury describes it as a 5000 piece puzzle. You don't start off at one spot and just keep building outwards, but you start off with lots of different areas that are easier to work with initially. Through time the gaps start to get filled in and the areas begin to link together so you eventually see how it all inter-connects and see the big picture. In the same way we learn some sparring here, some weapons there, some forms the next time, some drills other times and work on these separately. After consistent training you eventually understand how they all work together to make the big picture.

Nick
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