Shadowboxing
Though I have never been a weak person, I have long lacked control of my movements, awareness of my surroundings, and confidence in my physical abilities. I took many long distance walks, yet ambled along with bad posture, taking in the city a marathon walk at a time, yet looking, unless something caught my attention, primarily at my own shoes and the sidewalk in front of me. At boxing class today, after I moved from shadowboxing in the mirror to the punching bag, the teacher told me that my technique had improved immediately. I went from throwing random punches by extending my arms to using the force of my entire body, from thinking and worrying about every motion to just moving. All I needed, he said, was "a fucking target." He told me that I'll be ready to start sparring after a couple more sessions. What happens at Wu Tang PCA also happens outside. I left class at 5 and boxed all the way home—through Sara D. Roosevelt Park, across the Manhattan Bridge, through Boerum Hill and Carroll Gardens, across the Gowanus Canal, down 3rd Avenue, past Our Lady of Częstochowa, then down 4th Avenue to my house. I moved like my target was putting my key in the door at 440 and that I needed to be aware the whole way. It was wonderful. Everything around me changed.

kop jai habibti yaa noo al-'ayn
อบใจ حبيبتي يا หนู العين