Eskrima Kombat

At 27 years old, I have been pursuing a path that is unlike the paths of other twenty-somethings. I am teaching Filipino martial arts full-time through Bayani Warrior (www.bayaniwarrior.com) and training in Atienza Kali (www.atienzakali.com). The bulk of my money and time is spent towards training and developing warrior-skillsets such as edged weapons and firearms training, learning first aid, and finding ways to impart such knowledge to others. 

A lot of people see how much money, time, and effort I put into learning and teaching these skills. A lot of people think I’m crazy for training as much as I do and doing what I do for a living. 

But you want to know what I think is crazy?

I think it’s crazy when young people spend hundreds of dollars on alcohol every month…spending so much money doing things that harm their bodies.

I think it’s crazy when people go to a job everyday that they absolutely hate. 

AND…

I think it’s crazy when a gunman goes into a movie theater and shoots innocent people trying to enjoy the latest Batman movie.

I think it’s crazy when a gunman goes into an elementary school in Connecticut and kills innocent children.

I think it’s crazy when a lunatic runs through a college campus in Houston and commits a stabbing rampage, wounding and stabbing 14 innocent people.

I think it’s crazy when a teenage girl is gang raped by boys in her high school and commits suicide as a result. 

I think it’s crazy when bombs are planted in a marathon in Boston and then explode…killing 3 innocent people (one of which is an eight-year old boy) and severely injuring dozens of others. 

I think it’s crazy when people think that bad things cannot possibly happen to them. I think it’s crazy when evil acts can be stopped, but because no one had the forethought or the skill set to stop the evil being perpetrated, innocent lives are lost and families are broken as a result. 

This world is becoming ever-increasingly more and “crazy” everyday. When I train and teach others to learn the skills they need to protect themselves from such craziness, and when I am pursuing and teaching something that I absolutely love (and am pretty damn good at) I am then labeled as the “crazy” one. 

My goal is to help protect myself and those I love, as well as to impart knowledge to others to help them remain safer as well. I am not a glorifier of violence. I am simply a person who recognizes that evil exists, and I want to do my part to help prevent evil things from happening.

I believe that life is precious, and that it is beautiful, and that we all need to take responsibility to protect life by whatever means we can. This means training, and training others. By doing so, it helps people appreciate life more, and as a result, I find they lead better, happier, and fulfilling lives as well.

I think it is crazy to think or do otherwise.