In the past, I had never amounted to much. I guess sitting on my ass and playing video games all day wasn’t really helping. I guess I had been practicing Kung Fu for while, but it never really resonated with me until I fully learned to appreciate movement and when I began to practice parkour. My inspiration was simple. In an extreme sports music video, something caught my eye. These people were moving, in a way I had never seen before, in ways I didn’t know the human body could. I was instantly reminded of footchase scenes in movies where the heroes would soar over rooftops like superheroes. One move in particular really struck me, and I told myself “I want to do that.” Thus began my training, 4 long years ago.
Within a month of beginning, my passion for movement intensified exponentially with each passing hour. I read about it, watched films about it, and often sought out tutorials on the Internet. Soon, I found myself heading out almost every day, with the intention of training both my body and mind to be sharper the next day. Whenever I felt depressed or confused, spending time alone leaping above walls and soaring between rooftops served to clear my mind. When words were insufficient to articulate my feelings, movement proved to be the perfect medium; the world was my canvas, and I, the brush. It was during this period that I realized something: parkour wasn’t like any other hobby. It was freedom: freedom from boundaries, from problems seated in the past, future, and in between. When I was moving, when I was flowing, I was truly dedicating my entire being to the moment, and that was the only thing that was important.
Now my inspiration is my teammates and the people I train and play with. They push me to be the absolute best I can possibly be, and I couldn’t be more grateful for it.
