Hello folks,
I competed in Tap Out Cancer yesterday in Danvers, MA. It was a great time. It was for a great cause, and I did it with my amazing team. I was able to pull a gold at the tournament. It was a fantastic experience. I competed against two gentlemen I haven't dealt with in a year. I grappled them last year at Grappling Industries. Grappling Industries, was my "out of retirement" tournament. I wrote about it on this blog. That was a brutal contest. I forgot what it was like to clash with able bodied men in a combative art. It's different from training. It is cutthroat. I've changed a lot in how I train. In my twenties we went to war on the mats. Now, I train family man style.
I am not a family man, yet. I do aspire to be one though. When I first started going to North Shore Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy, under Danny Morera, I trained mainly in the mornings. I inadvertently hit up the "dads' class". It was strange at first. I didn't have too much in common with these standup gents initially. I was a bohemian punk from Brooklyn. These guys were salt of the Earth patriarchs. Jiu-Jitsu was our bridge though. On the mats, we had more in common then our external. The mats filled in the gaps. It wasn't too long before these folks became my family. I was heartbroken to have left Williamsburg Mixed Martial Arts, under Roger Mamedov. That was my family too. I had left Brooklyn for Salem. So, here I was. I was taken in as family again. This is one of greatest gifts of Jiu-Jitsu. Jiu-Jitsu is about family.
That being said. I competed along side a bunch of my teammates. I was able to take time aside to coach one of my guys. I was honored to be there along for the ride. My buddy, Gary Clark pulled a gold as well. I don't put the emphasis on the medal. It's gravy. It ain't the meat, and potatoes. The dads at North Shore taught me what it means to be a man. It isn't about how tough you are. It isn't about how strong, stoic, or smart. It's about the heart. It's about leading. It's about being there for your family no matter what.
I went through my opponents quickly. I know my level has risen greatly. It wasn't about smashing my teammates on the mat. It was about working together, collaborating, putting aside ego, and figuring out the next steps together.
Tap Out Cancer is a prime example of where the hearts and minds of Jiu-Jitsu folks are. We care about helping others, aspiring to be better, and being there for our family. Kano wrote about adult maturity. The practice of martial arts, in his opinion, is about reaching adult maturity (however elusive that is). This tournament was a real opportunity to give back to my Jiu-Jitsu family. My own gold medal pales in comparison to how honored I was to help my brothers out. God Bless America, and God bless Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.