Eskrima Kombat

(Picture Above: Holding my niece while teaching during a training event at my family’s home in Texas)

When people see my passion for the martial arts, specifically the Filipino fighting styles, they may only look at the surface.

They may see Sticks and Blades being swung about. They may see training blades tucked into waistbands. They may see grown men and women sparring and bruising each other with sticks and training swords. The casual observer may wonder “What is the point of all of this training?”

The truth is that the meaning of the training, and the passion for the art, is far beyond what lies at the surface.

Every time I hold a weapon in my hand, it is not simply a tool for destruction. It is a tool I use to connect with a deeper part of myself, my heritage, and my role as a man. It is a tool I use to express myself and to connect with something far lost in this world…something primal that extends way before I, or any of us, walked this Earth. It is a way of life that had steered me away from the drugs and alcohol that seemed ever-present when I was a teenager. It is a way of life that taught me the importance of self-mastery. It is a platform to help me affect positive change in the world. It is a way to create a world and a legacy that impacts people around me. My training in Atienza Kali has taught me that above all that I am a husband and father first before anything else…but the Guro in me must lead the husband and father to become better each day.

Does my training make me perfect? Far from it. If anything, it exposes the best in me, as well as the worst in me. It shows what I am good at as well as what I am not good at. I cannot hide who I am when I am training or fighting. Training, fighting, drilling…it is the best indicator of one’s character. As a result, I need to be better everyday. I need to be stronger, faster, and more intelligent. It pushes me to be better no matter how many bumps I hit along the way. 

I train and teach to make life better for those I love. 

I train and teach to contribute something positive to this world. 

I train and teach to be badass in every aspect of my life.

I train and teach the ensure that every person in the room is safer simply because of my presence.

I train and teach to become BETTER, period.

What about you?

Start your journey here:

www.atienzakali.com

www.bayaniwarrior.com