Meditations on God

Together In Strength And Weakness
Sometimes we need other people to be strong for us where we are weak.

We cannot do everything.

We cannot be good at everything.

We cannot fix everything.

If we try to be all things in all ways to all people, we are setting ourselves up for failure, frustration, and disappointment.

Not only that, but we are setting those who rely on us up for the same.

We must be honest with ourselves about our capabilities and our limitations.

And, we must be honest with others about these as well.

The onus is on us to know our strengths, our weaknesses, and where these overlap.

It is our responsibility to understand and accept ourselves for who we are and who we are not.

Without self-honesty, we will overreach, overextend, and overstep our bounds.

It is far better to admit that we need help in some aspects of our lives than to fail because of pride, denial, or self-ignorance.

We are not meant to be solitary creatures, surviving on our own and doing everything ourselves.

We are meant to work together, to cover for each other, and to build and grow together so that the result of our combined efforts, skills, and attributes is greater than the sum of our individual parts could ever be.

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 Kogen Dojo Self Defense Academy where he teaches Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

All photos by Robert Van Valkenburgh unless otherwise noted.

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October 1, 2020

community, help, honesty, integrity, self awareness, self knowledge, strength, teamwork, unity, weakness
On Relationships And Compromise
We should remain flexible in our attitudes, but not in our standards.

Compromise is a necessary facet of human existence.

No matter how strongly we believe something, if we want to get along with others, we will have to make concessions for the sake of our relationships.

An attitude of rigidity rarely serves the greater good as much as it serves our egos.

Inflexibility keeps us stuck in place, incapable of growing, changing, and evolving, while the world moves on around us.

For this reason, we must remain pliable.

We must remain open to new attitudes, ideas, and beliefs.

And, we must be willing to change our minds, our perspective, and our direction as need requires.

Our standards, however, the moral foundation upon which we stand and move, should never be compromised in the process.

Without standards, we risk being so flexible, so pliable, and so porous that we become something else altogether.

Without standards, we risk losing ourselves and becoming someone else entirely.

Relationships demand that we change, but we must also demand of ourselves that our integrity remains constant and uncompromised.

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.

Follow Robert Van Valkenburgh and Holistic Budo on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, and LinkedIn.

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September 30, 2020

attitudes, beliefs, compromise, ego, flexibility, ideas, integrity, open mindedness, pliability, relationships, standards
Luck Is Not A Plan
Some people are born lucky.

They are born smart, talented, beautiful, wealthy, or some combination of these.

Most of us are not.

Most of us have to work for what we have, what we want, and who we want to be.

To compare ourselves to the lucky is beyond foolish.

The lucky did not become so on their own.

They did not work for it.

They did not will it into being.

It is not something they had control over.

It is not something they earned.

It serves no purpose to envy that which another person has or is, especially when they played no role in having or being it.

Envy will not help us to be more lucky.

Luck is unreliable and difficult to replicate.

It is far better to focus on that which we can control, that which we can change, and that which will actually improve our lives, our position, and our character.

Envy of another person is distraction enough from our own power, our own capabilities, and our own potential, but to be envious of luck is to admit that we have no hope of or plan for improvement.

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.

Follow Robert Van Valkenburgh and Holistic Budo on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, and LinkedIn.

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September 29, 2020

achievement, advantage, control, envy, jealousy, luck, plan, power, purpose, strategy, success, wealth
Creating Our Lives
It is important to have some medium through which we are able to express ourselves.

Much of our life these days is spent on the receiving end of information.

We are bombarded with input and spend endless hours consuming other people’s ideas, opinions, and agendas.

It is easy to forget that we are creative beings.

While observation of and participation in the world is an important aspect of human existence, so is creative output.

Input allows us to be aware of and to understand our environment, society, and culture, but creative output gives us a voice within these and a means by which to change them, ideally for the better.

We are not here merely to be recipients of input, receivers of data, and followers of influence.

We are here to be influencers ourselves.

We are here to create.

Creativity, like all skills, requires practice, however.

It requires that we practice stepping back, processing our experience, and transforming that experience into something new, different, and maybe even useful.

We do not all have to be artists, musicians, or writers, but we do need a healthy, positive way to express our ideas, our feelings, and our unique perspective on some or all aspects of life so that our life is truly our own.

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.

Follow Robert Van Valkenburgh and Holistic Budo on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, and LinkedIn.

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September 28, 2020

change, creation, creative, creativity, ideas, influence, influencer, information, input, life, opinions
With Or In Spite Of Others
Fulfillment is rarely found through self-serving behavior.

Selfishness may get us more of what we think we want with regards to material wealth, power, or notoriety, but it has been proven time and time again that these, alone, do not actually lead to a life of contentment, fulfillment, or happiness.

To be sure, there is a certain amount of material wealth, power, and notoriety that we all need to feel safe in the world, efficacious in our lives, and loved.

With regards to material wealth, we all need food, clothing, shelter, and to be able to provide these for our loved ones.

With regards to power, we all want to be seen and heard, and for our opinions, decisions, and actions to mean something, to have an affect on our lives, and to make the change we want to see in the world.

With regards to notoriety, we all need to know that we are needed, wanted, and appreciated.

Not all material wealth, power, or notoriety are created equal, however, nor is there only one way to attain and keep these.

Simply put, we can either seek out, acquire, and hold onto material wealth, power, and notoriety with other people or in spite of them, but only one of these paths leads to contentment, fulfillment, and happiness because only one of these paths is not based in fear.

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.

Follow Robert Van Valkenburgh and Holistic Budo on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, and LinkedIn.

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September 27, 2020

achievement, contentment, fulfillment, happiness, meaning, notoriety, power, purpose, success, wealth

Together In Strength And Weakness

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On Relationships And Compromise

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Luck Is Not A Plan

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Creating Our Lives

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With Or In Spite Of Others

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