My first hero.
Mr Titan.
Do you remember your heroes? Even better, do you remember your first hero. When I was a boy, I struggled to find role models. With an absent father, no uncles or grandparents, I was a loose cannon for attention. My mother had plenty of boyfriends, but they were not interested in her kids. Luckily, I had my brothers. We forged a very close bond and remained close for many years. We made our own entertainment and our only restriction was our imagination. We used to build everything from castles to bomb shelters out of the assorted packing cases that shipped our life from England to Australia in 1970. Settling into Berowra the northern fringe of Sydney and right on the edge of our great bush, myself and my 2 brothers set about exploring this marvellous new playground.
Each morning we would watch on our old black and white television “The Super Flying Fun” Show. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Flying_Fun_Show. The show would have a section where Mr Titan, a cartoon character of a superhero would take the viewers through a basic stretching and fitness routine. I loved it. I would sit and fantasize that I was Mr titan; helping people and being idolised, the cartoon had a huge impact on my life, without me realising Mr Titan laid the foundation for what would become my life’s work. Reality soon came crashing down on me as we were yelled at to turn off the box and get ready for school. Even so, just seeing and feeling that small snippet in the mornings would energise me to get up and head into my day with confidence. Thank you, Mr Titan.
Fast forward 40 years and I decided to get a cartoon figure of myself as part of my book promotion, Stand Tall. I did some research and found a copy of Mr Titan after all these years, online. I am now that superhero (Well in my own way). It is my absolute pleasure to be a teacher for so many students. From the living room of my family home in 1970 to now have an academy that spreads my teachings worldwide is amazing. Thank you, Mr Titan, for being my inspiration and setting me on a course of action that would become my life’s work.
There is no denying the influence of a role model. I was just lucky that the theme of my role model was quite benign. Mr Titan was part of the mix of growing up with clear boundaries and discipline that did still allow the freedom to safely express myself. I don’t think that my parents set out or planned a path as to how we were going to be raised. I tend to think that we were raised by default and we were basically good kids.
For access to my teachings please go to https://www.northstarmartialarts.com.au/online-martial-arts-academy/ . For FAQ’S https://www.northstarmartialarts.com.au/online-martial-arts-academy/#faqs
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