KMS-JKD Article-What JKD

When I was eleven years old, my attention was captured by a television series in which a masked crime-fighter and his sidekick fought all sorts of criminals and evil-doers. The Lone Ranger and Tonto? No. Batman and Robin. No again. It was the Green Hornet and his Chinese partner, Kato. From the moment I first watched Bruce Lee as Kato wipe out the bad guys with dazzling speed, I was hooked on the martial arts, and knew that it was something I wanted to do.

When I was seventeen-and-a-half years old, I had the incredible good fortune of being accepted by Dan Inosanto into hi backyard Jeet Kune Do class, and learning Bruce Lee�s art. From the moment I first began training in JKD, I realized that I had found my �passion�, and knew what I wanted to do with my life, which was to teach Jeet Kune Do and help pass on Bruce Lee�s art and philosophy to others.

Now, almost 27 years down the road, I�ve been asked to talk about what Jeet Kune Do has done for me. This is no easy task, because if I were to list everything Bruce�s art and philosophy has done for me, then we would probably be here well into tomorrow. So, following two key JKD principles, I�ll keep it simple, and make it fast.

What JKD has given me is a fluid, non-limiting approach to living my life at its fullest, and achieving my full potential as a human being (which is something I�m continuously attempting to do on a daily basis). It�s helped me explore myself, both inside and out, and �find the cause of my ignorance� in numerous things, something which has not always been easy or comfortable to do.

Most important, though, Jeet Kune Do has taught me that life, like martial art itself, is indeed all about relationship. JKD has helped me, I believe, to become a better husband, a better son, a better brother, a better friend, and more recently, a better father.

Through JKD, I�ve had the honour and privilege of knowing and becoming friends with Bruce Lee�s family, Linda, Shannon, and Brandon. I have to say here and now that I think that Linda Lee Cadwell is one of the most remarkable and courageous people I�ve ever had the opportunity of knowing. To me, she truly embodies the �spirit of JKD� in living life fully and completely.

Thanks to JKD, I�ve had the enjoyment of growing up and training with many of the men who were students and friends of Bruce�s. Guys like Dan Inosanto, Richard Bustillo, Bob Bremer, Pete Jacobs, and Daniel Lee, and others, who functioned as my big brothers and helped to keep me level-headed during my more youthful days. I�ve also had the opportunity of forming close and lasting friendships with such people as Cass Magda, Tim Tackett, my own students, and John Little.

Finally, JKD has allowed me to travel both across the country and around the world and meet countless other people whose lives have been touched in some way by Bruce Lee�s art, and his message of personal liberation.

It�s been four years now since the members of the Nucleus first came together and Jun Fan Jeet Kune Do was formed. If I might be so bold, I�d like to say that I think that wherever Bruce Lee is now, he is smiling down on this commemorative gathering, and would wish us well in our endeavors.

In closing, I would like to thank all of those people who have shared time with me and walked with me along our separate yet intertwined paths. I�d also like to take poetic license with a quote I read the other day. The quote was concerning �Priorities� and said, �A hundred years from now, it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove� But the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child.� This being the case, then for the countless children and adults to whom Bruce Lee has made, and continues to make an important difference in their lives, he has, without doubt, helped make this world a better place. He made a difference in my life, and for that I say, �Thank you, Bruce Lee.�