I went to a concert with my son the other evening. It’s not what you think. It wasn’t a rock band or some pop music gig, but a concert band made up of percussion, various horns, and drums, just like a marching band. The theme was holiday songs, and the reason we were there is that my son’s music appreciation college class required that he attend a concert and write a report on some various topics, such as the music, the songs played, how the musicians interacted with each other, how the songs made him feel, how many people were in attendance, and more.

The twist to this whole event was the demographic of the band. The concert was in a retirement neighborhood, and with the exception of one high school freshman boy and a young married couple, every musician had gray hair. Many had a cane carefully tucked beneath their chair.

The music, however, was youthful and refreshing. If you closed your eyes, you were transported to another place of snowy Christmas pasts, and jingle bell dreams.

It was as if these senior citizens were transformed. While their outward appearance revealed their years of living, their music brought them back to a younger day. They seemed rejuvenated as they played for the audience, who eagerly awaited each song. There was enough information for my son’s report, but the best part was that he and I witnessed this magical transformation of mind over body, together.

It all brought to mind my own transformation. Like the music that so sweetly evolved from these elderly to their internally “younger” musician selves, martial arts have a lot to do with the transformation that took place in my life. And, while I’m not bordering on elderly just yet, there is something ageless and magical about martial arts. They take me to a place where I can be myself and can explore who I am.

I always tell people, if I had not learned a martial art I am not sure who I would be today. Certainly, I would not be a warrior, a leader, or an example. I would not be writing, training, teaching, or sharing. I would probably not be positive, confident, or a role model for others. I would be a 53-year-old woman wondering where my life went and regretful that I had not pursued my passions. I would not seek to be fit, creative, or active.

Martial arts are truly “transforming” arts. They push you to develop your strengths and face your fears. In the process, you learn a lot about yourself that you never realized. Your internal power and your mindset develop. Then, when you need to apply those virtues to life, you are ready. Warriorship is the byproduct. Others will see you in a new light, as well, as if they are spectators at an orchestra where the music is more beautiful than they expected. You will stand out among crowds of others, because martial arts flow outward from you, like breath through a trumpet.

Yes, martial arts and music are alike in some ways. Both allow you to envision something greater about your life. They open your eyes to an awareness that you may otherwise suppress, hide, or fail to engage. Within the depths of both, you are able to experience focus, imagination, determination, and transformation.

The gray-haired musicians, instruments in hand, are amazing examples of the way music not only transcends time and space, but eliminates the expected boundaries and limits. The elderly musicians in this band shared sounds, effort, and emotion with the other band members which culminated into a melodic tune that blended their lives together, and softened their years. It’s not a description much unlike the transformation that martial arts provides, turning the ordinary into the extraordinary, as we raise the self-imposed barriers we placed upon ourselves in order to become that which we practice.

I suppose if I must grow old, I want to be transformed into something mighty, powerful, and creative along the way. The musicians, whose lives spanned so many years of time, reminded me that I have a long way to go in my mission and my purpose, and that it never has to end.

Every day, I can inhale, then exhale a new breath into the melody of my life, through martial arts.

xoxo

Andrea

My book, The Martial Arts Woman, is available! Pick up your copy today! themartialartswoman.storenvy.com or on Amazon!