What Samurai Karate Studio Is All About!

Join me and listen to the video below that describes what <a href="http://www.samuraikaratestudio.ne/">Samurai Karate Studio</a> is all about!&nbsp; It was created by my mentor, teacher and friend, <a href="http://flavors.me/tomcallos">Tom Callos</a>, who has more than 40 years of experience practicing and teaching the martial arts:
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I have been training with Master Callos for more than 3 years and I am a proud member of two of the most unique associations for martial artist's and school owners out in the world today.  They are <a href="http://thenewwaynetwork.ning.com/">The 100</a> and <a href="http://thenewwaynetwork.ning.com/">The UBBT</a>.

Please check out the work we are doing!


Sensei Chris Feldt
<a href="http://www.samuraikaratestudio.net/">Samurai Karate Studio</a>
Columbia, SC 29229
803-462-9425
samuraikaratestudio@gmail.com

Domestic Violence And Why It Is Relevant

For those of you that might have missed it, Dr. Phil had a special on domestic violence this past week.  It was sickening.  Several ladies were featured who were dealing with ex-husbands/boy friends that were physically and mentally torturing them.  We all know domestic violence is happening, but when you personalize it and see the effects of an abusive situation, it's really frightening AND maddening.

Have I been sitting on the sidelines doing nothing?  Heck no!

I have raised money for one of the big domestic shelters in Columbia and I have taught free self defense workshops for the volunteers of this shelter, as well as several of their clients.  I did quite a bit of research online, to better understand this topic and include domestic violence facts and statistics in my free quarterly self defense workshops where the community is invited.

Why?


South Carolina is ranked 6th in the nation in domestic violence and 10th in domestic violence murders!  It's very relevant to the work I do in my community AND more than likely, it's very relevant to the work YOU do!

I just created a free resource that includes resources on domestic violence, bullying, stranger danger, etc.  You can take a peek at it  HERE.

Now, the real work is to figure out a way to incorporate domestic violence into my INTELLIGENT CURRICULUM.

Long term domestic violence: Being abused in this manner is like being kidnapped and tortured for ransom but you will never have enough to pay off the kidnapper. by Rebecca J. Burns


Sensei Chris Feldt
 Samurai Karate Studio
Columbia, SC 29229
803-462-9425
samuraikaratestudio@gmail.com

Jamie Oliver

Check out the most recent episode of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution

 

Mr. Oliver has become passionate about the state of kids’ nutrition, especially in public schools. His fight to be recognized in the LA area makes for a good story, but the information he brings — and his techniques for informing kids about the consequences of what they eat — really make this worth the watch.
He’s not teaching kicks and punches, but this information is far more likely to save some lives.

Sensei Chris Feldt

Samurai Karate Studio

Columbia, SC 29229
803-462-9425

Warning Signs of Teen Dating Violence

It starts with the words, “I love you,” and it ends with a punch in the face. It starts with the line, “It’s us against the world,” and it ends with her against the wall in tears. It starts with the suggestion of what to wear, and it ends with him saying, “I tear you down to build you up. You are mine.” I have heard the stories. I have seen the pain. So let’s look at the warning signs that every teen needs to know as well as parents. Yes, it’s a “family problem”, however with education and the ability to be proactive every teen has the opportunity to escape the wrath of an abuser – safely. Please do not ignore the following information.



See the rest of the article HERE.



About the Author....







Anne Jacoby



Anny is a Survivor of Domestic Violence with many years as a Certified Advocate. She firmly believes that EVERY female has the absolute right to protect and defend herself mentality, emotionally, spiritually and ultimately physically.

Anny received her PDR (Personal Defense Readiness) Instructor Certification in 2008.

www.annyjacoby.com

www.realisticfemaleselfdefense.com

www.projectsafegirls.com

anny@annyjacoby.com


Sensei Chris Feldt
Samurai Karate Studio
Columbia, SC 29229

New Cigarette Warning Labels

 
Everybody knew the graphic new cigarette labels the Food and Drug Administration would be disturbing. But the nine selected by the agency may still startle you.

The whole idea is that the labels will grab people by the lapels and be the visual equivalent of someone yelling: "Stop smoking!"

And, for the most part, the labels unveiled by the agency today live up to the advanced billing. Check out the ravaged teeth and damaged lip in the label on the left for starters.

Beginning in Sept. 2012, cigarette makers will have to give up the top half on their packages to display the nine images in rotation. In ads, 20 percent of the real estate at the top of the ads will have to be devoted to a graphic warning.

You can see the rest of the article, HERE.

Sensei Chris Feldt
Samurai Karate Studio
Columbia, SC 29229
803-462-9425

Happy Father’s Day: The Benefits of Dads to Children

Dr. Robyn Silverman is a child development expert who appears on television quite frequently, particularly, the Today Show. She also is the creator of Powerful Words, a character development program for children. In honor of father's day, she shares with us an article about fathers.


Happy Father's Day!


By Dr. Robyn on June 17, 2011

I watch my husband with my children in complete awe. They just adore him and he is so taken with them. He’s hilarious and goofy, stern yet gentle, physical yet affectionate and kind. I consider our family so blessed to have him as my children’s Dad. What a Dad he is.

If anyone believes that a father’s influence is any less important that a mother’s, they are certainly mistaken. The presence of involved, engaged fathers in their children’s lives can have enormous social, cognitive, and emotional benefits- whether a father is an everyday fixture in a child’s life or only sees them once in a while.

Benefits of Dads (who are involved and engaged in their children’s lives)

Increased self-confidence, self reliance. Empathy, self control, overall well being and assertiveness

Higher academic achievement

Lower delinquency rates, lower rates of teen violence, failing/dropping out, legal issues

Better career advancement (most notably in fields of science, math and tech for girls is increased)

Score higher on cognitive tests

Improved cognitive ability

More likely to avoid teen pregnancy, early marriage, physical/emotional abuse

Positive risk taking increased, willing to try new things.

More equipped to resist peer pressure—premature sex, smoking, eating disorders (for girls)

Better sociability and better able to work with people in authority (teachers and employers)

(So it’s important for mothers to allow and encourage fathers and children to spend time together)

Are fathers more important in a boy’s life than a girl’s life?

Fathers are vital in both the lives of their sons and their daughters. However, Sometimes Dads forget just how important they are: a Roper Poll commissioned in 2004 by the nonprofit advocacy group Dads and Daughters reported that two-thirds of fathers surveyed didn’t think their active involvement in their daughters’ lives was vital to the daughters’ health and well-being.

Some fathers don’t live with their children full time. Some are in a divorce situation while others must live away do to work needs. How would you tell a father to best stay in touch and connect with their children in these circumstances?

(1) Make parenting a priority: Even when you are away, you are still their Dad. Make sure that you make time to let your children know that you are thinking of them, love them, and are there for them in any way you can be.

(2) Take an interest in what they care about: Make sure you know the names of their best friends, their favorite activities and their current struggles. Open conversation about things that matter to them.

(3) Listen and ask specific questions: If you have limited time, make sure you listen more than you talk. Ask questions about their lives– and make them specific. Instead of asking; “what’s new?” or “How are things?” Ask; “What was something fun that you did with your best friend, Dena, this week?” “What new skill did you learn in martial arts class?” or “What was something that made you smile since we talked on Tuesday?”

(4) Know that the little things count: If you can’t talk for long, call, email, or skype anyway. Even a few minutes to show your children you care is better than nothing at all. Make a little video of yourself telling them how important they are to you or of you wishing them luck on their next big game– even though you can’t be there yourself. If you don’t have phone or internet access, write little notes about things you are thinking or doing or wondering about them– and then send them snail mail so they can always know you are thinking of them.

(5) Spend alone time with your children: When you don’t see your children a great deal, the typical temptation is to lump them together and spend time with everyone at once. However, once in a while, even spending short, focused interactions with one at a time can give them the undivided attention that they need to know you care and to share with you what’s going on in their lives. This time should be scheduled, reliable and predictable, if possible, such that a child knows that every Sunday at 10am s/he has brunch with Dad or every Saturday afternoon, they go for a walk/drive/run/bike ride/martial arts class. As you may have seen in my Today Show segment yesterday, even a little silly rough-housing and “horseplay” with Dad can have great benefits. * A new study tells us that children’s perception of how much time they spent with their fathers had the most impact on bullying behavior. (Vanderbilt U, 2011).

Happy Father’s Day to all you Dads out there. You matter so much– thank you for all that you do.



Sensei Chris Feldt
Samurai Karate Studio
803-462-9425

Confessions from a Child Development Expert: My Not-So-Perfect Children (or Parenting)

The following is a wonderful parenting article by child psychologist, Dr. Robyn Silverman, who has appeared on numerous television shows and is the creator of a character development program called Powerful Words.

By Dr. Robyn on June 14, 2011

My children are supposed to be perfect, right? They are supposed to be quiet, polite, perfectly behaved little angels who fall in line like lemmings and do everything I ask on the first request. I should be able to handle every problem (not that there should be any) with the greatest of ease.  I’m supposed to know everything, do it all, and never break a sweat, or heaven-forbid, lose my cool.  After all, I’m a child development expert.  I have the paper to prove it.

Ha! I can hear the echo of my children laughing in my ear as my toddler jumps naked on the couch and my almost one year old takes a bath in the dog’s bowl…yup, again.  Who’s climbing on the mantel? Who’s feeding the dog from the table? Who’s refusing to brush her teeth? Doesn’t want to go to bed? For a walk? To the potty? And whining. Oh, the whining.  Yes! It happens at my house too.


I guess I’m supposed to keep up this façade forever.  But that’s not all that helpful, right? Because the idea that we are all in this together—this thing called parenthood—somehow levels the playing field.  It’s comforting. I might have a lot of books on the subject, I may have even written books, articles, and blog entries providing hundred of tips and statistics, but the fact remains; sometimes, in real life, I don’t get it right on the first try.  Or the second. And it’s OK.  Well usually, anyway. I try not to beat myself up too much about it.

Parenthood has brought me just shy of insanity at times and made me delve so deep into myself that my love, without warning, can feel raw and gut-wrenching, elating and freeing all at once.  But it has taught me, in just over 2 years, that there is more to life than I ever imagined.  And…I still have a lot to learn.

Given the hand-on, real life experience my family provides, I actually find it to be one of the best “schools” I’ve ever been through.  There are lessons. There are practicums.  Oh, there are tests.  Pop quizzes happen daily.  And no, I still don’t like them.

I have learned:

You don’t have to get it right on the first try to be a good parent: The love is in the trying. It’s in the admission of mistakes.  It’s in the permission to make a second attempt…or a third…or the twentieth.

It’s OK to lose your cool sometimes: We are not made of plastic.  Patience can be compromised. We are living, breathing, feeling people who respond when someone carelessly tosses all the throw pillows on the floor, climbs onto the window sill, and is 1 moment away from exclaiming “Yook out bewoah!” and jumping off. Or perhaps that’s just me.

You can simultaneously be totally annoyed, hysterical, tickled, and completely in love with a child: My almost one year old son likes to look me right in the eye, drop balls of sweet potato, avocado and wheat bread from the table for the dog, and then grin flirtatiously at me.  My 2 year old daughter runs around opening every drawer in my kitchen, steals a piece of kibble to nosh on from the dog’s dish, and knowing I’m getting annoyed, says, godfather style (with full-out gestures) “Come here, Mama. I give you big hug” while I have 3 burners going on the stove and something in the oven.  You can try to stay angry but I find it impossible to keep myself from cracking a smile.

You say things you’d never thought you’d say/do: I used to cringe when I’d hear parents say to their children; “Let me smell your tushie.”  Here I am now. Infant tushie-smeller.  Bodily fluids have become, at once, a source of conversation and no big deal. I hear myself say things like “bath water is not for drinking,” and “did you just stick yucky something up your nose/in your ear/in your mouth?” almost daily.

The most frustrating characteristics in a toddler are the ones you covet in a teen: Sometimes I just gnash my teeth and roll my eyes.  Occasionally, my daughter talks back.  She often does what she wants. She takes daily risks that make my toes curl.  I just keep telling myself it’s the training ground for assertiveness, leadership, and courageous chance-taking in adolescence. Maybe I’m delusional but it’s the perspective that works for me.

Tomorrow is always a new day: There are days when I review my reactions, their behavior, and the combination of the two and I don’t feel all that proud.  I’ve chosen not to bash myself—but rather, learn from the situation and note; “that wasn’t the way…let’s try something else next time.” Because there typically is a next time. Kids are not perfect.  Neither are parents. Would we really want to be? It’s an imperfect match that often just seems to work in the long run. So I put my head down on my pillow at night, say thank you for these amazing children in my life, solute what went right, and forgive myself for what went wrong. My daughter’s words come into my head; “I try again?” Yes, if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.

And finally, and perhaps most importantly, I’ve learned to laugh.  Laugh hard.  It is the most beautiful, positive, unifying release that makes everything feel better. It makes me remember how powerful and amazing my children are– and how grateful I am for them. It doesn’t mean that the kids won’t drive us nuts again.  They probably will. It’s just part of what they do.

So today, I wish you laughter. Patience. Perspective.

No doubt I’ll need it too.

Yours in parenting,



Thanks Dr. Robyn for sharing this with us!



Sensei Chris Feldt

Samurai Karate Studio

803-462-9425

samuraikarate@bellsouth.net