Challenges for Now

Rick at Cook Ding's Kitchen has issued his annual Lenten Challenge. Also, the good folks at The Magic Tortoise Taijiquan School have issued their 100 day challenge for the Chinese New Year. My Taiji school is informally participating in the 100 day challenge. The goal for the Lenten Challenge is to focus on something, not necessarily Martial Arts, but some skill, every day of Lent. The goal of the 100 day challenge is to find a seemingly unattainable goal and try to master it in 100 days.

I have committed to the 100 day challenge. By default, since the first half of the 100 days is Lent, I will be participating in both. My challenge is to finally learn, complete, the Er Lu, or Pao Cui--the second routine in the Chen tradition of Taijiquan. I have been slowly working on it, amongst several other things, for the last two years. I have gotten 2/3 of the way over two years. So I don't have a terrible amount to do. But on the other hand, it has taken me two years to get 2/3 down. I not only want to learn it, but I want to learn it with my body so that it comes naturally. So it is do-able, but still a challenge. The 100 day challenge asks that you reach your goal in 100 days. The Lenten Challenge asks that you practice every day of Lent. So as to keep with the Lenten challenge, I am going to try to work on this form every day till Easter. That will give me a big boost in the 100 day challenge. Pao Cui every day for 40 days. That is a challenge in itself, given the rest of life still happens all around me.

I recommend these challenges to any and all. It is a great way to focus and accomplish.