Aikido in a Bottle

The modern life we live is filled with convenience. Back in the days where electricity was not common place and labour was only the manual kind, people eat what they sow (or farm). Lets not go too far and enter the barter world, but still even with money, people then still retained their craft. Sew shirts, plant crops, build barns, that sort of thing.

Now, we can get everything from the supermarket or mall. Need rice, fish, fruits, shirts, DVDs? Everything is there for the taking. Intuitively, one would think that with all these convenience on the shelf, a person would have more time for himself than before. But I'm hazarding a guess that all of us feel we're running out of time. So much so we keep trying to find more and more convenient or fast means of gratification.

Headache? Pop a pill. Need stamina? Drink energy can soda. Need to sleep? Pop a pill again.

So much so, opening something from a bottle and gulping it becomes second nature to us. More and more, we translate this to everything we do. Most people now don't have the patience to do something right if it means it'll take a lot of time. They need to accomplish greatness now and get on with life and the PS3.

Granted, our priorities are skewed nowdays. It used to be we wanted security in life and happiness with our families. Nowdays its all about money. Because its been drum into our brains that money makes the world go round and fancy cars are no longer an option. Money, a tool of convenience has taken over life as we know it. Because of the all elusive money, we know work in the office hours more than a normal person should. We get burnt out and have to go on expensive holidays to recuperate so that we get to do it all over again.

I'm not saying we don't need money. But remember that there are plenty of things money can't buy. Chiefly, happiness and health. Add to that, money can't buy skill either. So, you may be the richest man on earth but if you want to do Aikido right, you pay the mat fees and you train as much as you can, as well as you can. There's no Aikido in a bottle for you to pop in this reality.

The next time you wonder why some people just get Aikido and you don't, stop wondering. Just practice and do it. You will feel the failures and you will share the successes. More importantly, everytime you do something you will know if it works or not. Of course, don't forget the adage of the blind leading the blind. Finding a good teacher is a prerequisite.