02/17/2020
___ years later, we remember.
4 years. I wanted to write something yesterday on the 4th anniversary of SiFu Allan Lee’s passing, but didn’t really have much to say. Perhaps, it’s for the best. In Cantonese, the word for “4” (sì) sounds a lot like “death” (sī). So "4" is considered bad luck. A student once told me that I remind her of an old Chinese man. Maybe, deep down my old Chinese man sensibilities were causing writer’s block lol. I don’t know.
Today, I feel inspired to share. So here goes.
When I first started training, it took me over an hour to drive from the Bronx to Queens in heavy rush hour traffic 4 days per week, paying a toll each way. I paid more in tolls and gas each month than I did in training fees.
I was not the most dedicated person to show up those days.
One day, I arrived at training with huge blisters on my feet; so bad my feet were bandaged. The new paint on the concrete floor hadn’t fully cured yet, so we trained barefoot. After a few minutes of warming up, SiFu yells “Hey! Don’t bleed on my floor!” I didn’t realize I had bled through the bandages on my right foot and was leaving a trail of blood all over the kwoon as I practiced footwork.
I was not the hardest working person in the room that day.
One day on the drive home from training, SiFu told me he was offered an amazing opportunity to teach in China. He would have gotten a house and a very generous salary and had students already waiting. He was living in a very modest apartment and struggling financially. Knowing that him moving would pretty much leave me stranded in Wing Chun, I didn’t hesitate to tell him that I thought he should take the offer. It would be a better life for him and his family.
I was not the most loyal person in that car.
SiFu Allan Lee set such a high standard of what he expected from us in terms of effort, commitment, sacrifice, and - most importantly - character. But as ridiculous and impossible as his standards seemed at times, you had to accept them. You couldn’t take refuge in your excuses, no matter how good and reasonable they were. Why? Because he was living proof that his standards were possible to achieve.
He’s physically gone now. But for anyone who spent quality time with him, his example remains as prevalent as ever.
