Competition, Confusion, Learning

Fighting is sometimes an excellent metaphor for what we go through in life. Fight competition dynamics can be eerily close to life dynamics.

At one point I was going through some difficulty with the idea of competing in a sport in which my intention was to inflict harm on my opponent. One of my mentors engaged me in a conversation about the nature of a sport fight - a sport fight is one that is held within an athletic context, with a referee present to protect the fighters' safety.

Essentially, a sport fight places the participants in a state of physical and mental confusion - there are too many variables, too many unknowns about how the opponent will move, behave, and what surprises they will present.

The word confusion is made up of two parts:
con- the greek / latin prefix / suffix meaning "with"
fusion- a merging of diverse, distinct, or separate elements into a unified whole.

When two fighters agree to engage in combat, they compete.
Background and relevant definition of compete:
Etymology: Late Latin competere to seek together, from Latin, to come together, agree, be suitable, from com- + petere to go to, seek...: to strive consciously or unconsciously for an objective...

Essentially, both competitors seek to learn from the fight. They want to learn a lesson that they can only learn from an opponent who is completely willing to do them harm. The lesson is to be learned in an athletic context, with a referee, so that the fighters will gain knowledge that will keep them safe in other life situations. ie., not entering risky public environments after having learned that they need to get better at escapes or blocking punches. The fighters agree to enter a state of confusion with each other, in order to gain knowledge from the other, and thereby come away with a deeper understanding of themselves.

Thorough self preparation for a sport fight may be regarded as honoring one's opponent. Showing up with the right preparation sets the foundation for the learning that is to be done. In order for positive learning to happen, both parties must commit to the preparation process. Rather than preparing from fear, anger or insecurity, it is important to prepare from a place of respect for the competition that is to occur, for the learning that is sought.

Whatever it is we are involved in, life will sometimes take us into states of confusion. While we might not have a referee present, or an honorable adversary, we can check back in with our own logic and rational mind when we feel spun off our center. We will meet opponents. Our adversaries may be disturbed beings, they may be logistical problems, public transit nightmares or miscommunications. Whatever the challenge, more growth and forward movement will come from seeking to learn from the experience and honoring our own preparation.

www.merriam-webster.com, www.awrsd.org/oak/Library/greek_and_latin_root_words.htm