Be a bush if you can't be a tree.

Hello, and greetings to you all. I hope you have been well? It's been over a year since my last blog post, and for that I apologise. I said from the outset that I wouldn't write out of obligation; I would only write when I had something I consider to be of value to share. I have had a very difficult year in terms of my personal, work and family life, and I kind of lost my Dojo-Mojo somewhat. 

Laat year (2024) was an amazing year for my martial arts development. I started the year having recently passing my black belt in Karate, I was training twice weekly in Karate and doing a Kickboxing class once weekly. I had some personal training sessions under Raushan Sandhu at IMA in Leeds, and fought in my first Karate competition. I attended a few seminars, started writing a martial arts blog and finished the year by getting first place in a club points sparring tournament. At 48 years old, I felt unstoppable. 

This year (2025) started off much the same, and, additionally, I was due to start training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu on Tuesday 18th of February. I went to visit my Dad, as I did every week, on Monday the 17th and found him having a stroke. For the next 9 days my Dad was in intensive care, before passing away peacefully on the 26th  

Over the coming weeks I was extremely busy organising my Dad's funeral, emptying his house and sorting out his affairs. I was far too busy to even think about training. Once I had done everything on my to-do list, then came the grief. I cannot say I was overwhelmed with grief; I wasn't breaking down emotionally, I was not was in floods of tears, but I was overcome with a grief that made me question what was really important in life. Suddenly, dressing up in white pyjamas and fighting in a community centre didn't seem all that important anymore. 

I still tried to attend classes as and when I had the mental capacity to do so, but it was more for social reasons. I've been training at Shelf Karate Academy since 2019 and the people I train with are like family. I wanted to be around them, to be around their kindness, their positivity, to be a part of the club. For some months though, I wasn't really pushing myself. I was just going through the motions. 

By May, things were looking up. The grief was passing,  I was enjoying Karate again, and had started working towards my second Dan black belt. I was also attending some kickboxing sessions again. I wrote an article for Budo Mindset Magazine and was looking into what seminars were on later in the year for me to attend. 

Just as I was feeling like I was back in the game, I came up against another hurdle. My Mum, who has dementia, could no longer manage in her own home, and we had to move her into a care home. Not knowing how she would settle into her new surroundings was a worry for the family, and we wanted to make sure she was okay. Daily evening visits to the care home became routine for me, my sister and my Mum's partner. This made it difficult to get to classes, and again, made me question what was really important. I was back to going through the motions. 

They say things happen in threes, and it was only a month later, in June, that I got the call to say my business partner, Mark,  had been in a serious car crash, and was going to be off work for several weeks. Some of you will already know that I'm a tattoo artist, and have been working with Mark for seven years. Our shop receptionist had left the week before and now I had to singlehandedly run a tattoo studio - during the busiest season of the year. The extra hours, extra workload and extra responsibility were exhausting, and on top of that, visiting my Mum in the care home left me mentally and physically exhausted. I was trying to keep some semblance of normality with seeing my grown up children and grandchildren, and making some time to spend with my ever patient wife, but this meant less time and energy than ever before to invest in martial arts. I was down to maybe two Karate classes a month. 

I've always been an 'all or nothing' type of guy, and if I can't give something my full attention then I generally don't bother doing it at all. I'm not saying that this is a good attitude to have, but we are who we are, right? I had gone from training three nights a week with a clear and focused mindset to muddling through one two-hour Karate session every other week. My fitness levels had dropped significantly, I couldn't remember my Katas, I was making rookie mistakes whilst sparring and I was way behind schedule with learning my second Dan syllabus. It wasn't just that I wasn't making progress - I was slipping backwards. Like I said, it's been a difficult year... 

If you can't be a pine on the top of the hill,
Be a scrub in the valley — but be
The best little scrub by the side of the rill;
Be a bush if you can't be a tree.

If you can't be a bush be a bit of the grass,
And some highway happier make;
If you can't be a muskie then just be a bass —
But the liveliest bass in the lake!

We can't all be captains, we've got to be crew,
There's something for all of us here,
There's big work to do, and there's lesser to do,
And the task you must do is the near.

If you can't be a highway then just be a trail,
If you can't be the sun be a star;
It isn't by size that you win or you fail —
Be the best of whatever you are!       - Douglas Malloch

When I first started training in martial arts in 1998, I trained in Japanese Ju Jitsu under Shihan Steve Barnett, who taught me more about 'the spirit of martial arts' than any other person ever has. Shihan Barnett taught me that, as a committed martial artist, you have a duty to train. Whether you are tired, whether you are ill, whether you are injured, you turn up at the Dojo and train. If your Sensei is committed to turning up to the Dojo to impart his/her knowledge and expertise then you should do your best to be there to receive it. As Old School as Shihan Barnett was, he was a compassionate and understanding Sensei. He understood that people have differing circumstances; some have families, some have work commitments, some have health problems - not everyone can attend every training session. But Shihan Barnett insisted that you gave 100% in order to get 100% from your training. If you can't train three times a week, then train two. If you can't train every week, train every other week. But whenever you train, give it 100%. It is never 'all or nothing' - it is 'doing the best with whatever you have'.  This ethos has stuck with me for 27 years. 

As much as I had on my plate, and as much as I felt I was regressing, I didn't quit. I didn't have the free time to train three times a week. I didn't have the headspace to learn new Kata. I didn't have the energy to go ten rounds of sparring. But I showed up when I could and I did my best. I told my Sensei that I was deferring my second Dan grading so I could practice what I already knew. I was treading water, but I knew better days were ahead. 

Sure enough, by the end of August my Mum was more settled in the care home. Mark was back at work, which took a lot of pressure away from me, and me and my wife, Gill, had a holiday booked. Although I am no longer attending the kickboxing sessions I had some really positive Karate sessions in August/September before we jetted off to Spain for two weeks relaxing in the sun. Whilst on holiday I got chatting, as you do, to several other holiday makers, around the poolside. One couple had two children who had done Shotokan, and who they had taken to training sessions and competitions up and down the country. One lad was a boxer, and another had done some BJJ and grappling. I enjoyed conversing about training methods, technique and differences in disciplines. Tales of where we have trained, and with who. It reminded me of what it means to be a part of the Martial Arts community. 

I came back from holiday relaxed, re-energized and with a renewed vigour for Martial Arts. I'm once again excited for my Karate sessions. Last Thursday I was asked to demonstrate my interpretation of the Bunkai to the Bassai Dai Kata. I felt like I'd applied the techniques well, and was praised for my performance by my Sensei. Although I still have a lot on my plate at the moment, and can only manage one class per week, I am giving 100% on the mats. I am working on my fitness and conditioning in the gym before work. I am reading books on Karate. I am also hoping to supplement my weekly sessions with some seminars next year. 

Martial Arts are for life. Some years you will have the time and energy to train a lot. Some years you will hardly train at all. And that's okay. Just do the best with what you've got. Be a bush if you can't be a tree.

Rich Hobson

Instagram: @richie_blue_eyes