When he was in his late 60s, he was still beating us young kids who thought we were hot stuff, but was still nice enough to work with us and help us along. So I always had it in the back of my mind that there was this Zen kind of philosophy, this martial arts aspect to fencing.
More Quotes from Dion Shively:
If you watch a football game or a baseball game, you don't see sportsmanship like this. In fencing you've got to salute your opponent before every match, and you've got to shake hands. These are the rules.Dion Shively
I've actually seen kids who have bad attitudes or temper problems come into fencing and I've seen them leave with much more self-control and self-respect. I've seen them go from really lousy kids to pretty nice people, people I could respect. I think fencing can have an uplifting effect on the soul. It's very much a Western martial art.
Dion Shively
In fencing, it's just you and your opponent. You don't have teammates you can blame. You usually don't have a referee to blame. You either win or you don't. Every time you go out there, it's a test of your own skill and ability and how hard you work.
Dion Shively
We attract a different crowd than mainstream sports. We tend to get the people who never exercised, or thought of themselves as athletes, or ever considered taking up any sport. It appeals to the romantic as well as the intellectual side in a lot of us. We get a decent cross mixture of people, a lot of dreamers, gamers and other types.
Dion Shively
The best thing about this sport is that you can do it all your life. I know people who started fencing when they were 70 years old. This is a sport where using your head really counts. 'Physical chess' is a term that's been frequently applied to fencing. Really, the mind is the most important weapon you have in this sport.
Dion Shively
I named it the Zen Fencing Academy for my hero, a gentleman by the name of Joe Odom, who sadly passed away last year. He was my role model as a fencer and as an instructor. He founded a club in Pittsburgh, Fencers For Fun, as a method of keeping kids off the streets. He always came to (Indiana University of Pennsylvania) to help us out because we didn't have a coach. We always referred to him as the 'Zen master of fencing'. He was that wise old Pat Morita kind of character.
Dion Shively
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Based on Topics: Philosophy QuotesBased on Keywords: zen
And, as I have said, it's made me think twice about the imagination. If the spirits aren't external, how astonishing the mediums become! Victor Hugo said of his voices that they were like his own mental powers multiplied by five.
James Merrill
Do what you feel in your heart to be right- for you'll be criticized anyway. You'll be damned if you do, and damned if you don't.
Eleanor Roosevelt