“First a warrior, or all else is folly”
I first heard this engrossing quotation from my late friend and mentor, Bradley J Steiner. Bradley Steiner said “No one is born a warrior; they are in the final analysis self-made. Some people are it is true, born with great physical strength and natural athletic sharpness. However great an advantage to a warrior as inherited physical capacities may be, such capacities do not make or guarantee the warriors mindset and the ultimate fighting abilities and spirit of the one so fortunate to be blessed at birth with these advantages.”
Bob Whelan often says to me “David you are a happy warrior! Become a happy warrior, David!" No one is born a warrior. “This to me means as an individual you decide upon your allegiances, and you stand by them, and you remain steadfast even when the worst threat arises to endanger that which you have given your allegiance to. And you will then fight and remain unyielding, no matter the danger, and no matter the cost to yourself.
I have an allegiance to improving my health, strengthening my body, expanding my knowledge, and improving myself spiritually. I remain steadfast and stick to my goals, regardless of whatever threats or negatives come my way. I will then fight and remain unrelenting, no matter the danger, and no matter the cost to myself. Because of the hardships I have had as many have had themselves, this way of being and becoming a Happy Warrior is the answer to health, strength, and wellbeing.
Many mentors my father, Bob Whelan, Bradley Steiner have taught me to be a warrior, which has come about by seeking knowledge from these mentors’ others and applying it and be so damn determined to never give up attaining it. When one becomes strong mentally as well as physically you can manage anything and anyone that comes your way. You have done the work under the iron and strengthened your mind mentally as well as spiritually and have a strong mindset. Even when you repeat it yourself “I AM A HAPPY WARRIOR” you get a sense of strength and well-being.
Audie Murphy, the most decorated combat soldier of World War two, recipient of the medal of honor, failed the physical examination for the US Marine Corps. He enlisted instead in the Army, and would never have been accepted in airborne school, were it not for his appeal to a commanding officer, who agreed to give him a chance. Murphy was "under par".
The legendary William Wallace, Scotland’s great warrior leader and hero, was not a military man. He was a simple, typical young working man, who simply wished to live an uneventful, normal life until he realized that only by defeating an aggressive enemy would he ever have the opportunity to live as he wished. Note with great interest that none of the above real warriors present a tough guy image or aggressive appearance.
A split second’s reflection should reveal to any honest person how and why such a mindset and attitude as the warriors is all but required, to live, and to protect and preserve that and whom one loves and values, in a dangerous feral world. Take some time and think about that which is of great and irreplaceable value to you in your life, your strength, your health mental and spiritual, your freedom your dignity, those you love.
When you train remember that if you avoid in your efforts or relent in your resolve, you are letting yourself down and those you love. Make yourself into a warrior. Not the kind of mindless warrior who serves a master or a ruler, the kind who lives for and serves that which is of pivotal importance and value to himself.