Riding for Roses

Spencer’s ANC was good on Friday, so after clearing it with the oncologist we made plans to restart his Tukong martial arts class at Master Yi’s studio on 183 near Burnet in Austin. Monday, we had a short one-on-one lesson with Master Ali Brown to assess Spencer’s status. He’s been out of class, not getting much exercise, lost most of his hair, gained a bunch of weight from steroids, has some problems lifting his legs (chemo side effects), and tires easily (both from low hemoglobin and chemo side effects). I was stunned. Spencer remembers virtually all of the moves and routines, and to my eye his form is actually better on some of them than it was four weeks ago. Even during the short evaluation, he got tired, so our deal with Master Ali is that Spencer can come sit out any part of group class when he’s tired, or just leave if he doesn’t feel like staying.

Yesterday, we went for group class with the other kids from the Children’s School here in Austin. Before we went to class, Spencer and I talked about the questions he might get from his friends about being out of school, losing his hair, being in the hospital, and his moon face. Spencer is pretty self-conscious about his appearance, so he wanted me to answer. That worked after class, but he was a little uncomfortable about a few of the kids asking about his hair during class. He told them it’s the medicine that made his hair fall out, not a haircut. He was amazing. He stuck with the class with one five minute rest break sitting with me while his group was doing tumbling. Spencer tumbled a few times, was having trouble standing back up after tumbling, and asked for a break. He rejoined the class and they did a discipline exercise where Master Ali has them stand at attention and counts to 10. This time, he also tried to surprise the kids or make them laugh. He would jump and bend over right in each kid’s face. Spencer stood as still as a statue and was a champ. He also did the beginner’s form without missing a move. Awesome work.

At some point in the future, I have probably 20 entries worth of stuff on Master Ali and his teaching. He is absolutely fantastic with the kids. He mixes discipline with fun in a perfect balance that keeps 4-6 year olds engaged for 45 minutes of training. He teaches by example, with corrections as needed. He levels his expectations based on each child’s skill, demanding more as they improve. He creates the conditions for Flow and a positive learning experience. All the while he is doing this, he is also teaching one or more student instructors almost entirely by example. I love watching him teach class every time I go. I look forward to watching more, and posting some of my notes on his teaching and leadership here.

I need to figure out what to do about Spencer being so self-conscious. Right now, he’s refusing to even talk about getting together with some of his friends because he’s afraid of what they’ll say when he sees them. He wants to wait “until I go back to school”, but that won’t be until January if all goes according to current plan. It hurts so to see him tired and isolated, especially now that his counts aren’t the restriction. When his ANC was low, we had the excuse that being around sick people could be a problem. I just ache to see him happy again.