A Master Visit

Me with Sifu Pedro Yee

Spirit has such a funny way of guiding events in your life. Through the attraction of our thoughts, the energy we put into them, and allowing spirit to guide us, the more aware we become of the COINCIDE-ANCES in our lives, and we realize there are no such thing as coincidences.

Tomorrow will be three years since I have been master-less. My master and I went our separate ways three years ago tomorrow, and although it was probably the greatest thing to happen for me and I have had more successes and triumphs with our separation, I cannot help but get a little sad. I loved my master very much, and I had a great deal of respect for him. Most people do not realize the spiritual connection with master and student in martial arts. I trained ten years with him and grew up with him, and the only person to this day whom I have ever called MY master.

I am often reminded of the great teachers and their students that when you hear one's name, you associate the other. My old master and I were kind of like that. I was Master ____'s student. He was Andrew Trento's master. In even fictional things, Obi Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, Goku and Master Roshi, I really missed having that connection.

The thought even arose in my head of having the master-student connection through martial arts when I was with Master Bardatsos yesterday. Steven Lin has been training with Master Bardatsos for years and years! Since he was just a kid! And I think, wow...I could still be with my old master if he wasn't XYZ. To see how Steven has grown up with Master Bardatsos and having him still as an integral part of his life, I can't help but be a little envious.

Steven Lin as a kid with Master Bardatsos

 My friend John trains under a well known Taekwondo master named Doug Cook, who is the author of three very popular TKD books. I used to follow his work when I was younger. Master Cook to this day trains under and call shis original instructor his MASTER. He has his master come to his own school for testing and seminars, and it is such a privileged to see the lineage of masters still working with each other. Again, I get envious.

Master Cook with his instructor Grandmaster Richard Chun

It is a very personal deal of business with me, whom I will call master once again. Master Balon, Master DeJesus, and Master Bardatsos are all phenomenal masters, but they are my mentors, not my masters. Picky beyond belief, and a need for something brand new, yet the real genuine essence of martial arts. I used to say I cannot and I won't, but I know I was just saying that. But I DID say, perhaps with a brand new art? Well one art I have always wanted to do was Shaolin Kung Fu! The ART of arts! But still, I was going to be picky...until!

Lisa brought me to this Qi-Gong seminar in Clifton at a Kung Fu academy in which we had such an awesome experience and introduced me to spirit energy, where most of my training dealt with thought energy. It was amazing, and I loved the master, Sifu Pedro Yee. He was light hearted, beyond knowledgeable, and humble beyond belief. While I was there in his school that day, I felt amazing energy, and all I could think of was this: I am going to train here. I made a decision that Master Yee will be my new master. Not right away, I must close one end first with this 4th Dan test coming up...once again the topic of TIMING comes up! But you have to understand how HUGE this is for me. I think only the Friars may truly understand the intensity of this decision.

So this morning, I get up and Robert and I are dragging like we've never dragged before. For some reason we just did NOT want to get up. We were so late, it was like, why even bother training at this point? But we still ended up coming to the school. In the middle training, Robert asked me why I have no logo on the back of my uniform. I answered (for the twentieth time to him) tradition states you wear the emblem of your master on your back. So Robert wears my logo on his back. I wear nothing, because I have no master...but when IU train under Sifu Yee, I will have his symbol on my back.

While we did some of our forms, in the middle of training a man was staring into the window....who was it? None other than SIFU!!!! I couldn't believe it! On the day before my three year anniversary of breaking the ties with my old master does my new future master come for a random visit! I have not seen him since the Qi Gong seminar in July, and this was the first time he was in MY dojang! What an honor! It was more like a blessing! He gave me this big hug, smiling and laughing, we talked and talked, enjoying his company and sharing little stories. We then were taking pictures together, it was like me having the biggest celebrity in my school!

Now usually we are always done training by this time, but spirit had different plans. Our spirits premeditated this. What made Sifu turn left onto my street? What made Robert and I late? And the TIMING!!! Robert and I were talking about him not even 10 minutes before! When I told him about tomorrow's three year anniversary, he thought for a moment and said "I wonder..." he bowed off the mats put his shoes on and went to his car. He came back in with what looked like a scroll and he gave me a small banner from his school with his emblem on it saying with a smile "Happy Anniversary!" I teared up. He has no idea what a treasure this was to me, and what it represented.

It was like being given a key for when I am ready to move on. It was a symbol letting go of the old master and acceptance of this wonderful gift from my new one. I was at a loss of words to show my gratitude. But I am sure he felt my energy and knew. With a few choice words of advice before leaving, he gave me another grand hug and we just kept bowing and waving and smiling before he left. It was a HUGE honor and such an awesome visit. It was a sign that a new age is on the horizon...

Yours in service,
ANDREW TRENTO