Each year the Chan family has been taking a retreat to escape the pollen of Florida. Ok, not just to escape the pollen, but that is a big factor! Simo Suzy has extreme allergies during the Spring, and with the extreme climate changes, the pollen arrived early and with more intensity this year. Even I have been suffering from the changes and find myself with seasonal asthma. Our solution? Escape on an ocean retreat since there tends to be a lot less trees in the middle of the Atlantic 😉

Where to this year? We decided to take a Transatlantic cruise to Europe, which gives us plenty of sea days. Sea days = training days. It might seem odd that living at the Wah Lum Temple doesn’t afford us the time we would like to train together…or rather we don’t make it a priority. There are just too many distractions in our daily lives. Perhaps I will get better at making it a priority, but maybe I am self sabotaging just to take these sea retreats!

I’ve previously written about our family retreats and doing kung fu at sea. It is amazing that I have not turned on a computer or checked my phone for almost a week. I find it therapeutic and it helps me with my mindfulness. (which is something I am working on)

Kung fu with Grandmaster Pui Chan and tai chi with Master Suzy Chan…we can’t complain. I am so grateful to not only have my parents, but my teachers with me on these retreats. Learning goes beyond the physical movements and workouts. We take afternoon tea, extended dinners and lunches, etc. Quality time.

The Sifus from around the world often take their retreat to the Temple to ‘train’. Although there is physical training that occurs, they often just want to be around the Grandmaster. Sifu Leroy recently visited us and told me how much he appreciated just sitting and drinking tea with Grandmaster Chan. “I learn so much every time I visit,” he said. I think at a certain point of your martial arts career you realize that in addition to the physical training, just listening to the experiences and life lessons is equally as enriching.

I will be honest in that I personally find this complicated since my teachers are also my parents, which many might presume to be an easier dynamic, but I tell you …it is not! There is an immense challenge in compartmentalizing myself to being either student or daughter. At the end of each class we look to the Wah Lum altar and recite our philosophies. The final character and possibly the most important is ‘fo gee do jun’ (control). We state that you must control all things in life, which I interpret as one’s self. It is an easy philosophy to say, and some might even think to do, however I find that this practice is truly being exercised when training with my parents. I have met a lot of teachers who state that they cannot teach their kids, and vice versa. I admit it is tough having to shoulder the different roles, but I feel the benefits outweigh the challenges. 
Plus, I welcome the opportunity to practice my ‘fire turned upside down’.

As time goes on I value these retreats even more. I learned a while ago that although we don’t make it a priority at home as we should, having a distraction free environment for learning and quality time is priceless. Life is short, and I am grateful to have these moments, and to create lasting memories.

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