Sifu expressed his gratitude to me today for escorting him to Toronto Canada over the weekend to visit Spirit Wind Canada at the Ontario College of Traditional Chinese Medicine. It was a weekend full of intense practice. We engaged in Tai Chi and Bagua workshops as well as sat in on testing for two advanced students.
So why was he emoting so much over the phone? If we rewind his life for a month it is easy to guess why. On or around October 14th Sifu had a seizure and passed out for about 25 minutes. He was lucky to have Dr. Dylan Kirk in his company when the “event” occurred. Turns out, he had a negative reaction to his prescription cocktail that he takes daily. At the young age of 75, even he needs regular medical support. I write about this in part because I want you to know that even with his vast knowledge and daily practice he may be a super person but he is not a “Superman”. None of us are.
Dylan made sure Sifu made it to the hospital and received the care Sifu needed. With additional support from his other students that visited, after a few days, Sifu recovered. We were cautious about whether or not he should make the trip and waited for his family doctor to give us the go ahead. We were all happily surprised to learn that Sifu was cleared to travel.
Before the trip, Sifu told me that he hasn’t been on an airplane for almost 20 years. He was anxious about flying, but we agreed that, at this time, a short flight was better than a long car; I even brought my son Nexen on the trip for the weekend. Sifu lived in Toronto for a little under a decade, and his student Dylan lives there now, so they know their way around and have strong connections there.
One introduction was to Sifu Tao who is the head of a Shaolin school in Toronto. We met with Sifu Tao over dinner after our Saturday workshop and he invited us to visit his Kwoon (kung fu school) on Sunday. I enjoyed the visit very much. I look forward to collaborating with Sifu Tao in the future along with Sifu Chik and Dylan.
Toronto is an interesting city. It’s almost as big as New York City, but less populated so it doesn’t feel overly congested. It was bustling last week with because Taylor Swift was there performing and there was a Christmans parade. Nexen and I were impressed by the street art on Graffiti Alley, and Chinatown and Koreatown were vibrant and reminiscent of San Francisco prior to COVID. Our Sifu enjoyed all this and more. He expressed how proud he was of Dylan’s work as director of the school there and Sifu wanted Dylan and I to come together and learn about each other better. Sifu perceives me as the lead educator in the martial arts field today and Dylan as a top tier integrative medicine practitioner and professor. Our conversations were great and I now have a new reading list to work on.
Sifu, Nexen, and I flew back afterwards and we have committed to visit both Sifu Tao’s school and the College again soon. The whole trip back Sifu was smiling ear to ear. Mission accomplished! I think that the range of events that Sifu experienced over the past month was exasperating. He went from low to high and as much as he is grateful for making the trip I am equally as grateful for a chance to spend time with my senior teacher and learn more about how we together use martial arts differently for the good of other people.
With gratitude
Dr. Salvatore J. Sandone
