Your Kung Fu (Explained)

Sometimes there is no meaning to what we do. And sometimes the things that mean nothing, mean the most. To define the lesson even more would be to say that you can learn a lesson from something that does not seem like a lesson. That is the first and most important lesson that is taught by Kung Fu masters.

There is an ancient story about man who goes to a Shaolin temple to learn Kung Fu. The master of the temple agrees to teach him and calls for a large trough of water to be brought out. The master then tells the new student to hit the surface of the water with all of his strength. The student decides that this is a simple task so he begins to hit the water with every ounce of strength he has.

This exercise continued into the next day. The student swatting the water time after time, hour after hour, day after day. Weeks stretched into months, and the student slapped the water furiously while he began to have his doubts about his training. Each day he would release his anger and frustration in the only activity he could, slapping water.

Finally, after two long years of hitting a trough full of water, his anger overcame him. While sitting at a table for dinner, the student stood up and shouted at the master, "I have been hitting that trough of water for two years, and I have learned nothing about Kung Fu!" In his anger the student pounded his fist on the table and to his complete surprise, the sturdy wooden table broke into several pieces from the force of his blow. His anger forgotten, the student turned to the master. The master still in his chair, and not surprised by what just happened, said, "Now my pupil you have learned your first lesson."

Kung Fu loosely translates from Chinese as skill or work. To knock someones Kung Fu, or to praise it, is to knock their work performance, or skill level. Kung Fu requires both work and skill, and is something that must be studied and practiced for a lifetime. Kung Fu is a way of life and is not something that can be rehearsed in just a few days by people who have no interest in understanding what Kung Fu is really about.

This really follows the idea, and the problem, with the attempt at All-America City. It should be something we do on a daily basis. It is about more than just trying to figure out how to win a competition.

The real truth is that the Kung Fu line was put in because one of our writers thought it was funny. An avid watcher of Martial Art movies, the line, to the writer, seemed to fit. In retrospect, we think that this line, which really meant nothing, ended up meaning everything.