I’m a Farmer, Not a Fighter

Did you really mean you’re not a fighter? According to an old proverb, people are measured by the challenges they face. Such wise sayings are poetic and often require the ability of reading between the lines. Yes, we’re only as good as our next challenge—granted we overcome it and not willingly surrender.

What I’ve discovered is that many people fear conflict. We spend our lives guarded rather than meeting our challenges head-on. The notion brings to mind a quote from one of my favorite movies. In The Karate Kid, Part II, Mr. Miyagi sends a message to an old friend who is adamant about fighting him. “Tell Uncle I am Farmer, Not Fighter,” he declared.

In my opinion, Miyagi’s words were a bit out of character. Here was a guy who received the Medal of Honor while serving in World War II. He’d go on to cope with the death of a wife and unborn son, and much later in life, put the ass smack on a group of mischievous teenagers who formed the Cobra Kai. Miyagi was a tough guy, to say the least.

Yet, let him tell it: He was a farmer, and not a fighter. Conflict was something he simply had no desire for. What he wanted more than anything was to tend his garden, sell bonsais, and catch a few flies with his chop sticks.

If there’s anything to take from this, it’s that we all bear similar traits. Each of us, when tested, always comes out on top!  So what is it about conflict that makes us shy away from it? Instead of facing our challenges, it seems we’d rather avoid or ease pass them unnoticed. Like farmers, we prefer the peace of tending our own gardens.

But I’m a Lover, Not a Fighter…

In today’s world, there’s certainly enough war to go around. It’s a battle just being you, and hardly seems fair to have to ward off snakes, as well. The truth is that in life, we end up fighting for every single thing, every step of the way.

We may be peace-loving farmers. We may have assumed our last battle was fought long ago. But there comes a time when every champion must defend their title, reminding their detractors of why they are champion in the first place. Yeah, I hear you – you’re a farmer not a fighter. But either you’re going to meet that challenge head on or get kicked square in the ass.

My suggestion is to let love and farming have its time and place.

This is your Monday Unleaded for the week of October 6, 2013. Have a productive week!

Rumble in the Jungle – The Fugees featuring A Tribe Called Quest, Busta Rhymes and John Forté