Giving Thanks

Mr. O. wrote this article for the Newspaper in 1994 when asked to do an editorial around the Holidays.  You may have read it before, but we always like to send it out this time of year.  We hope you enjoy this time with your family and friends.

 

Expressing love is the best way to enrich life

by Rob Olevsky - 11-27-1994

There are, in this fast paced world, two simple things that I never seem to see enough of; smiles and affection.  So, at this special time of year, please spread both among your friends and family.

As your mind wanders after that big Thanksgiving dinner, ponder your lifestyle (it's never too late to make modifications), decide to spread more smiles, and before everyone leaves, hold hands and truly give thanks.  Many of you already have what is important:  family, love and health.  All those "things" that you think you have to possess, or provide, soon pale when held up to comparison.

Is it true that our "lifestyle" can determine how we have handled the past, dealt with present and look at the future?  I think so, and as I've gotten older, lived this life, looked for its rewards and found some of its treasures, my "lifestyle" has changed, as I have changed.  For example, the older I get, the more I enjoy teaching new parents about my early morning encounters with my second child. 

Back in 1987, when my son was two and before it was cool to be a "House Dad," my wife went to work earlier than me.  Consequently, I spent mornings at home with my son.  We slept late and did "guy things" like wrestling and exploring the woods behind the house.  We had breakfast together and went to the corner store to get my morning Pepsi.  I will always cherish   the time I spent with him, as he was my first child.

However, by the time my second child arrived, with some eight years between them, I had learned a little more about myself and happiness.  I now tell those new parents about how I would get up, practically before sunrise, to sneak into my daughter's room (she was a year old when I started) and sit in the rocker with the paper, waiting for her to open her eyes to see me waiting for her.  My reward would be that "bigger than life" stretch, morning smile, and hug that would fill any Daddy's heart.  Every night as I retire exhausted from the day, my heart reminds me of our early morning agenda, an encounter with a smile just before sunrise.

It is not so much that  I teach others, but actually I show others examples of what I feel is important, so that a younger generation might have other moral sign posts, besides the negative ones on the nightly news.  Many of the values that I've kept from my upbringing did not come from the lectures or discipline of my youth.  Instead my values were learned by example, based on what I saw, felt or heard from my parents and relatives. 

Maybe the things we've lost, teach us about the things that we still have.  I really believe it is the value that we put on the things lost, that defines our character in the eyes of our peers.  Freedom, marriage, children and money are just a few examples.  The loss of any of these things, that we hold dear, can devastate an individual or contribute to how an individual lives the rest of his or her life.

On a broader scale, animal extinctions in our own lifetime force us to evaluate the cost of our existence and the cost of our technology.  The threat of disastrous global climate changes and the loss of the world's rain forests make us look at our way of life and its viability in the future.  These perspectives give intellectuals food for thought and moral signposts on which we, as individuals and communities can choose to act upon, or to be apathetic about the loss of their value. 

As we review our past and present lives, and hope for our future, we should lay in a plan for "tolerance".  I'm not speaking  of that Democratic buzz word for bigger government programs for all the down trodden, but instead I mean the continuing need to walk a mile in the other man's shoes before you jump to a conclusion and condemn another in your mind or to others.  I throw this in hear because I want you to remember that the "little" ears are always around, and they do pickup on what we say to each other in our adult conversations.  If you ever wonder, just listen to a 3 year-old repeating your conversation, half an hour after you shared it with another adult.  We need to begin to show the "little" people that our fellow man does matter, and means more to us, than those material things that we so hard work for, but end up in the garage.  I want to challenge you to volunteer, to help someone out without seeking any reward, to teach one of your skills to another in need.  Lead by example.

Finally, as I look forward to the holidays with family and friends I make note of the main difference between my wife's family and mine.  At this time of year as children, I celebrated Hanukkah and she celebrated Christmas.  Our children will learn about both.  One set of grandparents will give them the values learned in a traditional Jewish family and the importance of times like Hanukkah.  The other set of grandparents will teach them about the Christmas holidays they shared as a Catholic family.  Our children will be better for having lived both.

This is the time of year that we think about family and friends.  Many of us have lost some family and some friends.  This is the best day to remember to cherish the ones that are here with us.  Happy Holidays.

American Women are Kicking their way into Fitness!

Women across the U.S. are being encouraged to get active and take charge of their health.  According to U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, the National Women's Health Week campaign wants to empower women to make health their top priority.  Women are being encouraged to get 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate activity, 1 hour and 15 minutes of vigorous activity, or a combination of both.  
The martial arts have become one of the leading new fitness activities of choice for Adult Women in the U.S.   Karate schools across the country have noticed that the male to female ratio is changing.  In an activity that has almost always been male dominated, women are participating in the martial arts, but not for the reasons most would assume.  

Jennifer Martin, a 34 year old Technology Project Manager, in Raleigh, North Carolina, was looking for a fun way to stay active after losing 140 pounds. Jennifer found Karate classes to be the answer.  She attends classes at Karate International with other adults 3 to 4 days per week.  Jennifer had her 18 month follow-up with Duke University Hospital this week and she is officially down 157lbs. She attributes karate to helping her get past her plateau. Jennifer is among a growing trend of adults finding fitness through martial arts classes.  Her instructor, Kathy Olevsky, 8th Degree Black Belt in Raleigh, North Carolina, attributes the growing adult trend to the new awareness to combat obesity.  "Everywhere you turn, we are now seeing messages about eating right and being fit.  Adults are seeking out lifetime fitness activities to enhance their healthy lifestyles.  Karate and the martial arts have replaced the older aerobics type classes.  Women can workout indoors, in clean, air conditioned facilities.  They learn Self Defense while getting in shape."
Jeanne Taylor, 51, had no idea of all the added benefits of Karate until she enrolled in a summer program at Bill Taylor's Bushido School of Karate in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.  She was surprised and delighted to find at a recent doctor’s appointment that the bone mass in her lower spine had increased by six percent after only nine months of Karate and no medications.  Kathy Orstein, 45, a self employed mother of 3 from Shirley, New York has found that since joining Vitale's Karate Academy 5 months ago she feels more confident and her stress level is way down.  

As a person who had played team sports throughout her life, Debbie McCarron, a 43 year old mother of two and office manager, found adding martial arts classes to her workout regimen increased her physical fitness and also gave her a skill set to defend herself.  The life skills taught at TriStar Martial Arts in Eldersburg, Maryland are not just for kids. It reinforces ideals such as goal setting, perseverance and confidence. After not playing soccer since middle school, she found the confidence to join a women’s team and has been playing every Sunday night for the last 7 years. After receiving her 2nd Degree Black Belt, she became an avid runner and just finished her 2nd half marathon.

The marital arts are apparently the new fitness choice for this generation of health conscious adult women of all ages, throughout the United States.  The average martial arts class is one hour in length and meets the requirement of vigorous physical activity.  Most adults attend two to four classes per week.  Olevsky advises women to search for a facility in their area that promotes adult fitness and adult martial arts classes.  “Many martial arts schools cater to large children’s programs.  Great martial arts schools do a good job of defining the difference between a children’s class and an adult class, and provide both to their community.”