Willing

by Michael Alan Brown

(Published in the July 1993 issue of the Ching Yi Kung Fu Association Newsletter)

(This article represents the views of only the author, and not necessarily those of other CYKFA Members.)

      In his final movie, The Shootist, screen legend John Wayne plays aging gunfighter J.B. Brooks,  nearing death, and spending his last days at a boarding house with a woman and her son.  The boy, played by Ron Howard, is enamored with Brooks and his reputation of facing dozens of men in mortal combat and consistently emerging victorious.  He persuades Brooks to take him out back for a shooting lesson, where they both fire 5 shots at a distant tree.  Both hit their marks, and the impact patterns vary only slightly.  Obviously expecting to see some phenomenal display of shooting skill from the old man, the boy asks, "How'd you ever kill so many men?  How could you get into so many fights and then always come out on top?  I nearly tied you shooting."  Brooks' poignant reply was, "Friend, there's nobody up there shooting back at you.  It isn't always being fast, or even accurate, that counts.  It's being willing.  And I found out early that most men, regardless of cause or need, aren't willing.  They blink an eye or draw a breath before they pull the trigger.  I won't."

      In the dozen or so years since I first saw the movie, I have reflected on that scene a thousand times.  In my experience, being willing is the one factor that overrides all others in any form of conflict, be it with guns, other weapons, or empty hands.  My observations have proven this to be the case without exception.  You can build the strongest, most lithe, supple, and athletic body, have kicks like lightning, break ten bricks with ease, do your forms with breathtaking presence, and blow a guy 30 feet across the room with your push hands skill, but when the man on the other side is willing, you can go down in a second to a fat old man who couldn't touch his toes on a bet.

      Hsing Yi Ch'uan, by definition ("Form and Will Boxing"), holds this concept as the crux of its training, but it must equally apply to any and all martial arts that you ever expect to offer protection in a combat situation.  I am not saying you should ignore the physical  skills required to execute techniques, just that they are virtually useless in a fight if you are not willing.

     So my advice is to examine yourself, and do it objectively and carefully.  Think about situations that would make you willing to fight without reservation or hesitation.  Maybe it would be someone threatening your life, and you knew for a fact that they intended to kill you; maybe someone trying to harm your wife or children; or simply someone challenging you to fight.  Whatever your personal threshold may be, it's yours alone, and only honest self-appraisal can tell you where it lies.  But one thing is certain: when you do choose to fight, you must be willing - willing to do it directly and immediately without blinking or drawing a breath, to go the distance, to do absolutely anything to win, and to completely disregard all margins of comfort and safety.  If you cannot reconcile yourself to this concept, stay away from fighting at all costs.