Last night I enjoyed a dusk walk, and even a ripe snack of dark wild cherries, in the smiling countryside. This verdant landscape painted with flowering accents and framed by citrus skies seeped into my sleep.

My morning was mostly free. The only day off this trip. I used it to digest the copious information presented so far. Taking notes is a useful exercise to replay body patterns in mind, even if you can’t read them later on due to illegibilty or unintelligibility.

It wasn’t until evening that I reconvened with Sihing Tobias for one of the regular classes at the HQ. He introduced me as the US National Instructor and asked that I help teach his students. I was more than glad to oblige. Even while vowing once again to learn more German.

The fortunate fact is that WingChun is a universal language. Self-Defense is a basic human concern. So it is relatively straightforward to demonstate physical logic without relying on exhaustive theoretical exposition. Amazing how a few hearty nods or short contacts suffice to communicate complex dynamics.

I was amused that common mistakes also translate across borders. Moving the Tan Sao (Spreading Arm) hand instead of the arm, overstepping the Dap Bo (Striding Step), truncating the elbow in Lat Sao (Casting Arms) are shortcomings I readily find in our US students as well. Yet this is no surprise if we consider their neurophysiological and musculoskeletal, rather than cultural or linguistic, origin.

There are a lot of belief systems and ideological dogmas worldwide that cause conflict. Our international organization opens opportunities to seek what works for us all, regardless if we are American, German, British, French, Italian, Greek, Namibian, Malaysian or Chinese.

Appreciating the practical study of WingChun Self-Defense is beneath these superficial details and beyond these subtle differences. Just like anyone can be inspired by the natural beauty of a vista.

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