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Mettle Maker #386
What’s the weekly mettle maker? Training tips and educational information in support of our free programs, that’s what! What’s mettle? According the American Heritage Dictionary, mettle is, “The ability to meet a challenge or persevere under demanding circumstances; determination or resolve.”
Heritage Self-Defense: Practice your Shin Box Get-ups and kicking from your knees. Watch the video on the right and make a habit of practicing your kicks not just from a standing position but from your butt, your back, and your knees. You also need to be able to go from your butt to your knees without hand involvement (just in case you have a weapon in your hand or you’re also wrestling). The trick to this is a wrestling movement called a Shin Box Get-up which — surprise! — employs the Shin Box of Folk Wrestling fame. Once on your knees, you need to able to kick from there. Everybody practices up-kicks from supine position (your back), but kicking from kneeling position is always neglected.
Here you have a movement series that’s impossible to classify as wrestling, striking, or weapons practice. Which is it? It’s all three at once! This is Rough and Tumble.
Rough and Tumble isn’t about being able to quickly and fluidly switch between rules sets or ranges. Being able to transition from boxing, to kickboxing, to grappling, to wrestling is great, as far as it goes. This is like being a cook masterful enough to design the recipes and manage the menus for four different restaurants — one specializing in French cuisine, one serving soul food, and a third serving a blend of Latin and Native American food — and spending two days a week working at each. Much respect to anyone who can do that! But a Rough and Tumbler is like a natural born Cajun cook who runs three restaurants serving the food that he prepares as naturally as your grandma bakes biscuits — without a recipe. All of the elements are there — the French, the African, Latin, and Native American — and they are perfectly harmonized. Not mixed. Not blended. Harmonized.
A Rough and Tumbler’s strikes are grabs and his holds are strikes; his grappling grips and positions set-up throws, and his throws set-up his wrestling holds and locks, which land like strikes. As with Cajun food, you might be able to spot an influence here are there, but it’s really hard to tease apart exactly which element is which.
Interested in American Rough and Tumble martial arts with a spiritual center? Join the martial arts club in Richmond, VA or click here to sign up for the Heritage self-defense distance learning program.
Heritage Fitness and Survival Two-fer: Saddlebag Carries for Fitness and Survival.
May I suggest that, on a regular basis, you get yourself an awkward object and go for a walk. Start with something small, like a bottle of water. You’ll be shocked to know that just carrying a 16 oz. bottle of water in one hand, which disrupts walking mechanics by wrecking arm swing, can slow your walking speed by 15% (according to my tests). Work your way up to heavier weights. Try walking a mile with a gallon of water in one hand (about 9 lbs), or with a 10 - 20 lb weighted belt or an auto tire over your shoulder. Fun facts: A gallon of water weighs about 8.3 lbs (might as well say 9 lbs, depending on the container) and the average 15” auto tire weighs about 18 lbs (about as much as 2 gals).
Consider this scenario: While driving back from a camping trip in a remote area, your friend Fred veers to avoid hitting a deer and the pickup runs off the road into a ravine. You are thrown from the vehicle and get up, scraped and stunned but not seriously hurt. Standing on the steep and slope you look down and see, to your horror, that the truck plunged off a vertical cliff and is now in flames. There is no way to get down to see if Fred made it without rappelling equipment. You survey the area and are able to find an intact gallon of water that had been in the bed of the truck. You estimate that you are approximately 12 miles from the nearest ranger station at the main road. Do you have the strength to make the walk, and how long will it take? How can you even guesstimate the answers to those questions if you’ve never tried anything even remotely similar?
Since I often walk 1 to 3 miles with awkward weights in hand, I would say that chances are good I’d be able to complete the hike in about 6 hours. In November of 2023 I completed a 16 mile walk in 4 hours and 40 minutes with no backpack and no handheld objects – about 17.5 minutes per mile. 12 miles at that speed would take 3.5 hours. Adding 25% due to the awkward weight increases the time to 4.375 hours. Allowing for three 30-minute rest breaks yields a conservative estimate of 6 hours. Hint: Take off your belt and make a sling for the jug. Once you get past a few pounds, gripping hands quickly go numb.
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Homily for Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, 12/31/23 – Father Mitch
Readings: Sir 3:2-6, 12-14, Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5, Col 3:12-21 or 3:12-17, Lk 2:22-40
22 When the days of their purification according to the law of Moses were fulfilled, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male who opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”),* 24 and to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, “A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.”*
25 Behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.‡ 27 He came in the Spirit into the temple. When the parents brought in the child, Jesus, that they might do concerning him according to the custom of the law, 28 then he received him into his arms and blessed God, and said,
29 “Now you are releasing your servant, Master,
according to your word, in peace;
30 for my eyes have seen your salvation,
31 which you have prepared before the face of all peoples;
32 a light for revelation to the nations,
and the glory of your people Israel.”
33 Joseph and his mother were marveling at the things which were spoken concerning him. 34 Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary, his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which is spoken against. 35 Yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul, that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”
36 There was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher (she was of a great age, having lived with a husband seven years from her virginity, 37 and she had been a widow for about eighty-four years), who didn’t depart from the temple, worshiping with fastings and petitions night and day. 38 Coming up at that very hour, she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of him to all those who were looking for redemption in Jerusalem.
39 When they had accomplished all things that were according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city, Nazareth. 40 The child was growing, and was becoming strong in spirit, being filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.
An Angel of the Lord appeared to Mary and told her that she was going to give birth to a son who would be called Son of the Most High who whose kingdom would have no end. And then, despite having no relations with a man, she conceived and bore a son. With all of that in mind, t's rather confusing to read that when they came to present their newborn son at the temple, "The child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him." Under the circumstances, how in the world can the prophecies of Simeon and Anna be the slightest bit amazing to Mary and Joseph?
Because that's just the way people are. Elsewhere in the Gospels we read how the apostles, despite witnessing scores of miracles and hearing the words of the Master straight from his lips, seem to have difficulty understanding his teachings. One betrays him for a handful of silver. Another denies him three times. I'm sorry to break it to you, but people -- me included -- are pretty dense.
We get up in the morning and drag ourselves to the coffee pot dreading the workday ahead, instead of looking at the sunrise full of hope and joy. When the phone rings we flinch. We wonder which one of our kids is calling for advice, which friend needs a helping hand or a small loan, or how late our boss wants us to work. Instead of wincing at the phone, we should be overjoyed that our kids respect our opinions, thrilled that we have friends who are willing to help share our burdens in spite of our faults, and thankful that we have jobs that pay our bills and put food on our tables.
Yes, like Mary and Joseph, we’re a little dense. We forget God’s blessings, God’s miracles, and God’s promises and we need a reminder. When Mary and Joseph presented baby Jesus at the temple, they had the prophets Simeon and Anna to remind them. We have the scriptures, our clergy, and our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. We have the Holy Spirit, who comes to us in prayer. When misfortune or tragedy strikes, it’s natural to take refuge in those things.
May I suggest that, whether things are sunny or cloudy, we go a step further and take the advice of St. Paul in 2 Cor 2:14,17: “Thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads in every place the fragrance that comes from knowing him. 17 For we are not peddlers of God’s word like so many; but in Christ we speak as persons of sincerity, as persons sent from God and standing in his presence.”
Jesus is alive. We are standing in his presence right now, just as Mary and Joseph were at his presentation. The scripture says, “The child was growing, and was becoming strong in spirit, being filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.” If we are one with the Living Christ, we can open our hearts and minds every day and witness his presentation in our inner temples, allowing the infant Christ to grow to maturity in us so that we too may grow strong in spirit.
* 2:23 Exodus 13:2,12
* 2:24 Leviticus 12:8
‡ 2:26 “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew) both mean “Anointed One”