“The goal of the martial arts is not for the destruction of an opponent, but rather for self-growth and self-perfection. The practice of a martial art should be a practice of love – for the preservation of life, for the preservation of body, and for the preservation of family and friends.” – Dan Inosanto
I’ve been training Martial Arts for over 30 years and only 3 years ago began digging deeper into my Filipino Cultural Martial Arts Journey with my Kuya, Guro Oliver Salvador, Founder of Salvador Arnis Martial Arts.
The Salvador Family is very close to my heart. I am the Taekwondo Master Instructor for Leonidas, Oliver’s son, who is living with Autism. Leo has come so very far in his ability to focus, communicate, and self-regulate using my therapeutic approach combining taekwondo and occupational therapy.
It has been both exciting and humbling to begin a whole new journey of learning such a deadly art form however, it also is strangely calming and somewhat physiologically familiar. It is almost as if somewhere in my own family ancestry, there was a lineage of martial artist warriors.
My dad was a karate and judo instructor prior to his illness and it is probably pretty likely that our ancestors had to train to protect their own families and land. Even my mom began training in her 60’s and attained her Blackbelt when I left home for university!
I am grateful for the opportunity to re-discover this art not just for self-defense and self-regulation but to honour my ancestral roots.
