|
Throughout the six years I’ve
been involved in the martial arts, I have never come across two men more
opposite in their personality and characteristics. To choose the better of the
two, in any manner of thinking, would be easy because of their incredibly
differing character traits. My former Tae Kwon Do instructor, a seventh-degree
black belt named Michael Parr, is a hard, cold character who shows very little
emotion and respect for others. He demands a lot from his students, and
eventually many turn away from this distasteful excuse for a professional
martial arts studio. Richard Gilliland, on the other hand, is the most jovial,
fun-loving individual I’ve ever met. Everyone has a great time at this
eighth-degree black belt’s school, and because of the manner in which he
interacts with his students, one can hardly help but love him.
“Master” Parr demands ultimate
respect from his students, insisting that they seek him out upon entrance to the
school to greet him and bow. Richard Gilliland sits behind his desk and calls
out a greeting to those who walk through his door at different times during the
day. Although Richard Gilliland holds a high rank in Sanshinkai, he does not
require that his students call him “Master”. Instead he prefers a more casual
term, asking the students to refer to him as “Mr. G”. Many of the adults from
Karate International of Kernersville converse with him on a first-name basis. If
any student at M.L. Parr’s Academy of Tae Kwon Do dared to refer to Master Parr
as “Michael”, he would probably explode.
Parr’s deadpan nature subdues
the liveliness of many of his students. Those who feel free to joke and laugh in
the locker room quiet considerably upon entering the presence of the Master.
They dare not laugh or even speak during class, for fear of invoking a stinging
reprimand. Classes are entertaining when Master Parr is away and one of the
higher ranking black belts is left in his stead, simply because the gloom is
momentarily lifted and everyone is free to have fun and express themselves. Mr.
G’s students feel free to talk, laugh, and even joke during class and with the
instructors without fear of reproach. All types of classes are enjoyable because
of the carefree atmosphere surrounding the area, and a group of people
consistently gathers around Mr. G’s desk to absorb his amiable, enlivening
persona.
Parr’s insensitive, impassive
nature inevitably rubs off on his students. Whereas many of the members of the
school, young and old alike, started out with their normal, interesting
individuality, the vindictive atmosphere at the Academy quickly cowed their
passion for having fun. Although martial arts is a serious endeavor for anyone,
a genial atmosphere makes the journey to black belt and beyond appealing and
enjoyable. At Mr. G’s studio, students who come in reserved and very quiet
quickly blossom in the friendly, family-oriented atmosphere of the school. The
vivacious ambiance surrounding Mr. G and his dojo (karate school) draws people
in to the “circle of life”, so to speak.
These two advanced martial
artists run their schools remarkably differently. Master Parr’s studio is the
epitome of perfection. All the students wear uniforms exactly the same and wear
matching sparring gear. The mats are clean and the building is spick and span.
All the equipment and fighting shields are in their proper places. Spectators
have the convenience of comfy, perfectly matched chairs and clean, dirt-free
carpets. Mr. G’s school, on the other hand, has personality. Instead of the
hospital-clean look, mismatched chairs in various sizes sit around for resting
and paraphernalia fills the corners. Bo staffs lean against the wall on one
side, while another has concrete blocks and “battle batons” for fighting. The
bin of equipment for the classes is in no particular order; instead everything
is jumbled together. Because of the fact that this karate school is partnered
with a recreational center for kids, magazines, books, computers, and homework
are scattered around in the back workout room, which doubles as the place the
children play. The floors are concrete and painted both red and blue in
alternating, uneven places. One mirror is cracked in the corner, and
recreational apparatus is hung from the rafters and stacked in one corner. At
Mr. G’s school everything is easily accessible like at Parr’s studio, although
it is arranged much more comfortably.
You can assess Parr’s qualities
just by his physical appearance. His emotionless, unsmiling face betrays his
demanding disposition and warns everyone to “back off: you don’t want to mess
with me”. His towering, lean, fit body hints at hours spent in the gym to
enhance his physical appearance. The body posture he adopts suggests he’s
critiquing your technique, as he stands with crossed arms and legs spread
shoulder-width apart and stares at you with his unblinking eyes. Mr. G.,
standing at an impressive six feet tall, presents quite a different figure. The
man is well muscled, and, to say the least, imposing. White hair recedes from
his forehead and frames a countenance of perpetual cheerfulness. Interestingly,
Mr. G, on first sight, could be more intimidating than Master Parr merely
because of his physical size. Both men are daunting adversaries, considering
their physical capabilities, strength, and intelligence.
The demeanors of these two men
are extremely different. Master Parr remains pretentious and arrogant, acting
like he knows it all. If someone attempts to tell him something, he’ll interrupt
and let him or her know as quickly as possible that he already knows everything
they’re talking about. Mr. G cordially listens to what his students have to say,
down to the littlest child that walks through the doors of his school. He’ll
joke and laugh with them, but always makes sure they understand that he is
authority and worthy of respect. Master Parr insists on the highest degree of
deference to himself. Mr. G commands that his students show respect but also
allows them to interact with him and the adults and black belts with
familiarity. Master Parr insists that all of his students refer to both men and
women as “sir”, for tradition’s sake. Customarily, men were the only teachers in
old schools, and as women received higher ranks and began teaching, the custom
was upheld and “sir” remained the prevalent moniker. Mr. G maintains that his
students say “sir” and “ma’am” to males and females respectively.
Master Parr rarely comes out of
his office, which is located down in the basement of the school, other than to
teach class, but Mr. G is very outgoing and loves to interact with people.
Michael Parr chooses to talk only to the select, sycophantic few that have
gotten into his good graces. Others he all but shuns from his presence, unless
they seek him out and force him to communicate. Mr. G will walk around his
school and chat with anyone that happens to be standing nearby at the moment.
The self-defense techniques each
practice are virtually the same; both Tae Kwon Do and Sanshinkai practitioners
use kicks and punches. Parr taught only the sport of Tae Kwon Do and not the
intricacies of how to defend yourself in a close-at-hand situation. The main
focus at M.L. Parr’s Academy was sparring, and instead of focusing on practical
street combat, martial arts competitions were emphasized. Techniques taught at
Karate International, however, are truly self-defense techniques. Throws,
defense against grabs, bear hugs, knife attacks, sticks, kicks, and other
real-life situations are taught. Mr. G’s way of teaching is not about strength,
but rather outsmarting your opponent and doing something they don’t expect, such
as defending yourself with only a pencil or small stick.
The beliefs these two hold about
their abilities are very different. Master Parr came across as believing himself
to be a top-of-the-line martial artist who knew everything there was to know,
but Mr. G continually refers to himself as a student of the art. Whereas Parr
seems to think he has exhausted the extent of martial arts knowledge, Mr. G
realizes that even at eighth-degree black belt he has barely scratched the
surface of the same realm. Parr calls himself a master and all but lords that
fact over his students, while Mr. G consistently insists that he, along with all
the others, is learning more about the art every passing day.
Michael Parr was tutored mainly through one martial arts master, Sun Yi, and
thus has a very limited perception of the field of Tae Kwon Do. Mr. G, on the
other hand, trained with many other martial arts experts. Having served as a
Navy Seal in the Vietnam War has greatly increased his life skills and augmented
his prevailing abilities in karate. Training under different instructors has
broadened Mr. G’s horizons and provided greater insight from different
viewpoints otherwise unavailable.
These two martial arts senseis
(teachers) are so different in likeness and manner that one would hardly believe
they could compare in any way. Comparison goes no further than that both are
teachers of the martial arts, own their own schools, and cut an imposing figure.
Rather they differ with each other more, in speech, action, interaction, and
studios. The differences between the two are very nearly absurd in their exact
oppositeness. Having spent more than two years in the environments of each of
the two schools, my interaction with Mr. G and the experiences at his karate
studio have been much more beneficial to advancing my journey as a martial
artist than did Parr’s. Although both men are affluent in their practices, in my
opinion Mr. G is the better black belt martial artist because of his
communication skills, integrity, knowledge, courage, and extensive life
experiences. |
