The artist formerly known as...

[Michael Udel]

In this case, the post'er formerly known as PGSG is now Michael Udel. I've had such a lovely time talking with so many of you that I feel like shedding my screen name and becoming a bit more personal. Hope you don't mind, but it's tough to remember all the code words, computer ID's, etc.

Best,
Michael Udel

PS-Got a good job offer to teach English in Guangzhou, including a month of paid training. It feels so good to let things come as they may and be confident they'll work out for the best.

[Grimlock]

Congradulations on the job offer! I'm sure I speak for myself when I say that I'm looking forward to hearing about how your time in Guangzhou goes!

OK, I'm sure other people are interested, too.

You're last statement about letting things come as they may got me thinking (uh-oh). Perhaps this idea can be expanded upon in its own thread...

[dra9on]

PS-Got a good job offer to teach English in Guangzhou, including a month of paid training. It feels so good to let things come as they may and be confident they'll work out for the best.

Hi Mikey

Glad to hear that ..it's so.. Zen

Did you went thru a period of uncertainty too ?

[Michael Udel]

minor doubts

Dra9on,

I decided to move to China in September 2004. By the end of the calendar year, my preparation for actually moving had consisted of telling a few people I would be doing so. Everyone kept asking me when, where, how, and why. Nobody liked or understood the why, except my Tai-Chi Chuan teacher, who had coincidentally done exactly the same thing as me at almost exactly the same age some 25 years prior.

The where I would be staying was a little vague: Guangzhou. Well, it is a big city. Did I know where I would be living, like the address? Nope. Was I arranging my sleeping accommodations? Nope. For the first night? Nope. Who was coming to get me at the airport? I dunno. Next question: how was I going and what would I do when I got there? By plane, duh?, and I would teach English. Do you have money for the plane ticket? Not yet. I'll have it by the time I need it. Did I have any experience teaching English? Nope. Did I have any qualifications whatsoever for teaching English? Nope, not really, except being a native English speaker, which is the only thing you really need in China. Did I have a job lined up? Nope. In fact, while searching online for a job, I received the very clear message, via a specially appointed winged messenger, to stop searching for the job immediately. Message received. How would I get a job teaching English? Don't know. It'll happen. When was I going? Not sure, some time after the middle of February. Don't you need to buy the plane ticket now? If I did, I would have. I'll wait until the right moment. When's that? I'll know when it happens, until then, stop trying to make me worry.

And so, the beginning of the start of the semester in China during the first week of March came and went, and I was still in San Francisco, selling my personal possessions on Ebay, waiting for the right moment. It came in the first week of April, the signs were there, I bought the ticket, at about the same time, an "unexpected" opportunity presented itself for my accommodations. It was only unexpected to outside observers, to me it was just one of the details that somebody else bigger than me was handling. I put an ad on craigslist.org to sell my car, sold the car two days after placing the ad, and a week later was on a plane for Guangzhou, fully confident that everything was going according to plan, whatever the plan was, which I was only partially aware of. Leave the details to fate and concentrate on the big picture.

During the flight, somewhere after Tokyo and we had entered Chinese airspace, the plane was struck by lightning and I had a minute or two of doubt. What if I couldn't get a job? I haven't had a decent job in five years, maybe the streak would continue. What if I ran out of money before I got a job; what would I do then? I calmed myself, remembered that being unemployed for most of the past five years had given me lots of time for qigong. I went over the plan, remembered why I was moving to China and how I came to this decision, and was fine again.

Since arriving in Guangzhou April 12, there have been difficulties getting information about extending my tourist visa, and buying the plane ticket to Malaysia was a bewildering ordeal, all of which made some doubts briefly surface, but they receded quickly. The teaching job found me, and there were obvious signs indicating it was the right one. The more willing you are to see the bigger picture that you're not in control, the easier fate makes it to "read the tea leaves."

You can't manufacture confidence, but when you're on the right path, be cool, everything will work out. Give your sincere effort every day at what you believe you're supposed to do, and the right things will come your way. You just gotta be relaxed when they arrive and accept them as they come. You're not in control. There are greater forces at work. The only thing you control is how much effort you give. I think the vast majority of Sifu's students have realized they are on the right path. The Intensive Kungfu Course was definitely a confidence builder for me. Thanks, Sifu.

Dra9on and Grimlock, I hope this answers your questions. If not, that's what the "Post Reply" button is for.

Michael

[dra9on]

You can't manufacture confidence, but when you're on the right path, be cool, everything will work out. Give your sincere effort every day at what you believe you're supposed to do, and the right things will come your way. You just gotta be relaxed when they arrive and accept them as they come. You're not in control. There are greater forces at work. The only thing you control is how much effort you give. I think the vast majority of Sifu's students have realized they are on the right path. The Intensive Kungfu Course was definitely a confidence builder for me. Thanks, Sifu.

Michael

Michael,

That is so close to heart ..

Our conditions might differ but the circumstances are astonishingly alike..

I quit from a well paying Civil Service job 5 years back .. not really knowing how things will turn out .. Thou I dont really know what I wanted for a career, I'm certain that -holding a nice position , doing meaningless job like signing stuff without knowing much abt what I was signing , is not what I wanted .. I was not gaining any real marketable skills .. and I can't go on like that .. so I resigned, much against my parents' wishes.

oh.. btw, I was kinda good at what I was doing that I was free for almost 1/2 of the time, surfing the then addictive Internet .. including Sifu's rich and informative site ..

There was so much uncertainty after that .. and getting a job was difficult as experience in the Civil Svc counts to nothing .. somehow I got this feeling there's gotta be something for me.

Then came a Helpdesk Supervisor position which I bit the bullet and took it up . I bet U wont know how much Singaporeans like to complain..
However, I knew that if I am able to hold the fort of a Helpdesk, there's nothing else I can't do.

Anyway , I was at it telling myself that all these will surely lead to something better .. The Helpdesk experience certainly made me more vesatile and more emotionally detached.

Then I got retrenced, that project couldn't quite deliver and was losing $

There I was jobless again and and the economic outlook then was bad, such situation is no joke in Singapore where unemployment welfare is unheard of

Was quite down for awhile , doing oddjobs just to survive.. and all these while following Sifu's Q/A plus other articles.. telling myself I must attend 1 of Sifu's Intensive Course when things get better..

Eventually managed to land myself in a decent System Admin job and worked my way up , finally finding myself a comfortable niche.. thou the salary is still not quite the same as what the Civil Service paid me, I was alot more happier doing more meaningful stuff and I managed to save enough $ to attend Sifu's course.

And the best thing is that after attending Sifu's course, I am already performing at work and play better than ever.

I am so glad I did went ahead with the course. I had actually wanted to attend Sifu's course maybe sometime next year where I'll be financially more stable.. But something tells me there's no such thing as the 'best time'.

Pardon me for being so long winded, allow me to end this post with a Zen story ( 1 of my fav) : -

A woman goes to the market to shop for water melon. She asks the Stall Owner : - ' I want the best water melon.'

To which the Stall Owner replied : - ' .. well .. these Are the BEST ..'

[Michael Udel]

Yes, quite similar

Dra9on:

Yes, quite similar. Five years ago, I resigned from a very easy, high-paying Information Technology job where I could set my own hours and have plenty of time for mountain biking and shopping. Increasing pain in my back and wrists began to prevent me from enjoying mountain biking, and I realized that earning a lot of money was meaningless without any real responsibilities like a family; I was just spending the money to pass the time.

So I quit, moved to another city believing that a major change was in order to improve my situation. Things got worse before they got better, but the move allowed me to meet my first qigong teacher, leading to my current situation, which is a lot better than five years ago.

BTW, I also started my career on the Help Desk, although as a simple phone tech support. Glad to hear you've made it up to System Admin

Michael

[Yixin]

Dear Michael,

I don't mind you getting a little more personal here.
BTW, Congratulations on your job!

Yixin

[Michael Udel]

Changing schools

Dear Friends and Classmates,

When I attended the Intensive Shaolin Kungfu Course in April 2005 I had very little martial arts experience. After returning home to Guangzhou, I was not able to practice kungfu by myself, especially without frequent supervision. For that reason, I looked for a local school and found one, so I've begun studying Tai-Chi Chuan.

Considering that I don't practice Shaolin Kungfu or Shaolin Cosmos Chi-kung, my status as a Shaolin Wahnman student has changed, but my feelings about Sifu and all of you have not. Shaolin Wahnam and this forum continue to be places I hold in special esteem.

Best wishes,
Michael

[Andrew]

Michael,

Your path may lead you in many directions. Whether you practice the Arts taught by Sifu or not you are always welcome.

Andrew

[barrys]

Michael,

Good to see you still posting. This is an amazing forum for people to meet and share experiences with openess and tolerance.

Hope things are going well for you in China.

Barry

[Mark A]

On the Forum

Hey Michael,
I just wanted to echo my Sihing's Andrew words, if you dont practise our arts you are still welcome on the forum.

And who knows what the future will bring .

As for you story, it is really nice to hear. I have been in a similiar situation myself and I find myself in a similiar situation now.

Basically I am in a crossroads now and looking to completly change many things in my life. I look down each road and because of my practise I just smile and see each turn as an opportunity and full of fun .

Take Care

mark

[Charles David]

Dear Michael,

I'm sorry to hear that you were unable to continue your practice. I hope that you find what you are looking for in your new Tai Chi school.

Still,

[LeeWeiJoo]

Dear Michael,

I hope that you find what you seek in your new path, and do post in the forums.

With Shaolin Salute,
Lee Wei Joo

[Michael Udel]

oooh, pictures

Thanks to Andrew, Barry, Mark, Cha, and Wei Joo for your kind words. I will certainly continue posting and reading.

I'm just finishing a week's vacation in Fujian Province where I visited some interesting places like the Southern Shaolin Temple in Quanzhou. Yes, THAT Southern Shaolin Temple. I'll post a link to some pictures soon.

Best wishes,
Michael

[Ray]

Dear Michael,
I hope you are doing well. It's pretty ironic that you got to see Fujian before me, since I am supposed to be able to trace my ancestry back there. How's Guangdong coming along?

Best,

Ray