Positive change begins with positive expression.
The ideas we put into the world shape our reality and the reality of others. The way we express ourselves, in word and deed, has the power to change our attitudes, perceptions, and the attitudes and perceptions of others. By changing the way we express ourselves, we empower ourselves to make a positive impact on our own life and the lives around us.
What think, what we say, either out loud or in writing, and what we do affects us all in a very real way. It affects the way we think, the way we behave, and the future we create for ourselves and for others. We get to decide, in every moment, and every expression, whether we want to create a world that is more positive and harmonious or more negative and discordant.
Obviously, we are not alone in this, as there are many other forces acting on us and the world around us that we cannot control. Empowerment begins not with focusing on the aspects of our lives over which we are powerless, however, but with focusing on and leveraging what we do have control over. Empowerment begins with focusing on ourselves and how we express ourselves, our ideas, and our will.
Holistic Budo: As it is in budo, so too it is in life. As it is in life, so too it is in budo.
Robert Van Valkenburgh is co-founder of Taikyoku Mind & Body and Kogen Dojo where he teaches Taikyoku Budo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
All photos by Robert Van Valkenburgh unless otherwise noted.
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