MEETING CHALLENGES

by Alex Lamas

I recently had a student who stopped showing up to class. He didn’t want to disappoint me, but I could tell that he felt the classes were a bit too challenging for him, and he was getting discouraged with his slow progress. I assured him that he wasn’t alone, that many students feel that way at the beginning (as I did), and that nobody in the school would judge his abilities. I realized that the challenge for the student wasn’t with the difficulty of the class, but rather with the difficulties the student was facing within himself.

Often in life we encounter seemingly overwhelming obstacles. We see a mountain in front of us, yet we have no idea where to begin our ascent or even if we should endeavor to try. From attending a martial arts class, to moving from one place to another, to being out of work, to experiencing a divorce, or to mourning a death in the family, these difficulties can push us to the point where we feel like the situation is utterly hopeless.

The truth is—no situation is forever, and no situation is truly out of our control. No matter what happens, life goes on, and situations are always in a state of flux whether we notice it or not. Sometimes we may have to wait for the right opportunity or meditate on what course to take. We may wind up in a class that isn’t suited to our bodies or needs, but that doesn’t mean we have to give up. We just need to find what works and commit.

The one thing I love about the martial arts class I belong to is that there are no judgments. Everyone is at a certain place in his or her development, and these individuals are perfect right where they are. You are perfect for where you are in life, and you are exactly where you need to be. I know this may not sound satisfying, but believe me, we all go through it. We all have to start at one place, and where we end is just the beginning of something else. And the cycle repeats, again and again and again. Each summit reached reveals yet another mountain to climb. Each problem solved brings about a new one to tackle. This is the learning process of life, and we often find ourselves in these situations because of past lessons that we failed to notice or address.

This is actually a very positive point of view because when we think we are done, we have new challenges to take on, to move us forward in a new direction. If we feel that we're getting stuck in one place, then there is a lesson there as well. Try a new approach or point of view (wish they could learn that in Iraq), though it is an old axiom that “when you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”

The answers to life’s problems don’t exist in a church, monastery, or school of any kind; the answers lay within ourselves and only ourselves. We have no one else to blame, and if we give in to blame at all, that, too, is a mistake. Get away from blame altogether and only search for the resolution. “Do not believe what your book says. Do not believe what your teachers say. Do not believe what your traditions say. Do not take anything merely because it comes to you with the authority of someone else. Make it a personal experience. Think for yourself. Be convinced, and once convinced, act.” – The Buddha speaking to his disciples

The ultimate challenge is the one within ourselves—the only situation that is permanent happens after we depart this life. And even then…who knows?

“He who conquers men has force; He who conquers himself is truly strong.” – Tao Teh Ching (33), Lao Tzu

Copyright © 2007 Alex Lamas, All rights reserved.