When my closest friend was convicted of fraud and sent to prison, I definitely was not prepared. To this day, almost 10 years since her conviction, I believe she was innocent -- but that is a different story.

     In the months immediately following her incarceration, we spoke frequently. In response to her almost constant complaints about the horrors of prison and her probing questions about how to deal with her situation, I attempted to offer my best philosophical jewels. Surprisingly, she found value in my words.

     "How did you learn so much about how to deal with adversity?" she asked.

     "Most of these lessons I learned through the martial arts," I explained. "I was lucky enough to have excellent teachers who taught more than just the physical movements."

     "You know, you should write down your thoughts. They're wonderful. And I'm sure other people would find them valuable too," my friend recommended.

     Thus this book began.

     I believe we learn life's important lessons through a myriad of small experiences. If the basics we need are not instilled by the time we must react to a critical situation, then it is probably too late.

     To give you an idea of what I mean, I'll tell you about something that happened when I was 8 years old. I found a neighbor's wallet still holding its money. I knew I could take the money, return the wallet minus the cash, and I wouldn't get blamed for the missing money. For some reason, I overcame my temptation to steal, left the money inside and returned everything to my neighbor. I may have done it because I feared my parents would notice if I had extra money to spend. I don't remember why I acted honestly. But I still remember how good I felt about doing the right thing. I remember the self-respect I felt as I told my parents of my good deed, and I wallowed in the satisfying glow of their visible pride.

     That wallet didn't contain a lot of money, so it wasn't a big temptation -- which means overcoming that temptation was not a big thing -- but I learned a huge lesson that has served me to this day. I learned how wonderful it feels to be proud of my own actions.

     Anyway, I followed my friend's advice and began writing.

     Each weekend, I left Santa Fe behind as I travelled to my cabin retreat at the foot of the San Pedro Mountains in Northern New Mexico. I wrote and wrote and wrote. I knew I had something important to say. Within a few months, I'd completed about 100 stories. My first drafts weren't very good, but I persisted. Over the following months, I edited and edited, and rewrote and rewrote. I wish I could tell you that every story was a gem, but that's simply not true. Life is a Martial Art contains a careful selection of the best tales.

     I showed my stories to a number of friends who had never studied karate or any other martial art. Happily, their responses were all similar. "When you asked me to read your work, I really thought that I wouldn't enjoy it since I'm not interested in the martial arts. But once I started reading, I couldn't stop," each said.

     Buoyed by this consistently positive response, I am offering my thoughts to the world. Feel free to read the sample story I've included here. If you find it interesting, please read the section on ordering Life is a Martial Art. Special pricing is available to instructors (college, high school, elementary, martial arts, zen, etc.). I believe these simple ideas are important. So if you feel the same way, I want you to have a copy of my book.