When I first heard, saw, or read, “MAGA”, my thoughts immediately went elsewhere, outside of the political realm, where the word, “maga”, was not an acronym, where it was half of the duo, “Krav Maga”. The term is derived from the Hebrew words “krav”, meaning combat, and “maga”, meaning contact. Krav Maga is a gift from the IDF, the Israel Defense Forces.
Thoughts lead to other thoughts as they are wont to do, which in turn lead to other thoughts. In my case, the chain ultimately led to the email I sent to my Krav Maga instructors years ago.
From: Dempsey Darrow
To: Krav Maga
Date: Aug 24, 2008 6:51 PM
Subject: There’s Something Wrong with My Neck
It’s tough to turn my head to the left, kind of a crick that I didn’t get from sleeping wrong. There are bruises up and down my forearms from 360 defenses; there’s a large one on my wrist that makes me wince when I put on my watch. It takes me a lot longer to get out of bed these days. I go to one knee to tie my shoes and just recently I realized the noise I heard while standing up was a groan. My back talks to me on occasion, sometimes loudly, and I’m certain it’s secretly preparing a particularly moving soliloquy for the future.
It’s when I find myself saying, “I’m getting too old for this!” that I think about my West Point classmate and friend Major General Keith Huber, Commanding General, U.S. Army South, and the day we won the eastern championships in Judo for the Academy. Today, as then, there is no give in the man and the country as a whole benefits from his service.
I think of my classmate Michael “Domo” Dominguez, presidential appointee confirmed by the Senate as the primary assistant to the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, who was my Ranger Buddy at the U. S. Army Ranger School in 1973. Domo never quit and displayed to all those who observed him the true meaning of character as well as mental and physical toughness.
Then there is classmate Bob Caslen who, as Commandant of Cadets at West Point, pinned on his second star, then took command of the 25th Infantry Division and is currently preparing them for deployment to Iraq. Though he and I discussed my accompanying him overseas in some capacity, bureaucracy makes such a scenario highly unlikely.
Men of this caliber will never be too old for any endeavor and neither will I. Krav Maga provides an opportunity to rise above the common level of life, the bruises, bumps and pains are a constant reminder of this. They are testimony that some are called to be sheepdogs and that it’s a noble calling.
—
Dempsey
A surgeon’s deft handling of Titanium took care of my back, and my neck no longer hurts. Regardless, the issues are a negligible price to pay for unassailable confidence and significant ability. Additionally, in today’s political climate, my thoughts will drift in a given direction more often.
Dempsey 🌵
Chalk Dust 