In the days before Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim tested me for my 5th Degree Black Belt level at the Jung SuWon Martial Art Academy, students asked me if I was afraid of what I had to do in the test.  One test in particular is walking on hot burning oak wood coals after having motor cycle spokes poked through my forearms and buckets of water hanging from them.  The students asked “Am I afraid of being burned”?

I thought to myself how do I walk across the hot coals and not get burned? 

First answer I came up with was that if I could sweat enough maybe my feet would be wet and not burn when I walked across.  Next I thought maybe there is some higher state of meditation I can achieve where I will not get burned.  But these answers didn’t really seem to bring any real resolve.

After a few more days of thinking something came to me very loud and very clearly! 

Great Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim always told me the most important aspect of all my training will always be my “Attitude” – my perspective!

I realized that this testing for me and for the Jung SuWon Academy was a very special event.  It was a very rare event.  CNN Headline News covered it.  It was a very special and unique moment.  Who knows when it would ever happen again.  My testing would be a learning experience for all of the students past, present and future to come.  I realized that there was a lot more happening at this testing than my simple two feet walking across a few hot coals!

My true realization:  My new perspective gave me the understanding that I was now prepared to walk across the hot coals – and get burned!  My new perspective said that it was OK?  My new view became much deeper and wider and rose up to a higher level well beyond two feet on hot coals.  I got tingles on the back of my neck.  I was very excited! 

The testing went extremely well.  It is now a mark in history.  I learned something very deep and profound.  I learned that we put the meaning in our life.  We decide how we are going to feel about things.  How we decide determine how we are going to feel. 

It’s all too simple.  Life really is very simple!