I’ve been in the martial arts for over forty years. During that time I’ve had a lot of my own self-defense experiences, but it never ceases to amaze me to hear others’ stories: Those enlightening moments of truth that spoke to them about what fighting really is and what self-defense has to be in order to save their lives or the lives of those around them. Here’s one I heard back in the 90s from a law enforcement officer (We’ll call him Jeff Doe to protect his privacy):
Our self-defense training was limited. I mean, we did a lot of firearm training and ground fighting stuff. You know: The grappling and take downs. We were trying to get people cuffed; not kill them. We did do some stand-up stuff [fighting practice], but nothing like you kung-fu guys are doing. I never questioned it [his training]. (laughing:) I even became an instructor, myself. But, after years of training I came across this guy, one night, outside a club, who surprised me. I couldn’t get a grip on him, and didn’t know how to slow him down. Before I knew it, he’d struck my eyes, broke two fingers on my right hand, and throat-struck me.
I’m grateful to be alive. If not for my colleague’s fast response and my stubbornness, I may not have gone home to my wife that night, or seen my son born. (My wife and I had a son a year later.) … You never know where these attackers are going to take things – how far they’ll take it, I mean.
Today, I continue to teach jiu jitsu, but I continue to learn wing chun, too. I don’t want my son to grow up without me, or my wife to have to raise our son without me. I love them too much to do that to them.
Jeff’s experiences are why we say, “Never Again!™” If you’ve ever had a negative experience, similar to Jeff’s or not, we help make sure you’re never again a victim of someone else’s stupid decisions. And if you’ve “Never!™” been a victim of such violence, don’t take that for granted. As Jeff learned: It can happen to you.
Empower yourself to life!™
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If you have a question or subject you’d like to see me address on my blog page, or if you have an interest in learning self-defense in or around Tallahassee, Florida, write to me at sifuyost@gmail.com.
