Life as a Lion

It is said, a fear some men have is not being seen as dangerous as they get older. Some men are not burdened with that thought.

A lion’s roar

They are not burdened simply because in their heart they know they are dangerous. They know they have prepared all their lives to protect that which matters most. Winning the fight is the goal, but may not be achievable. The real lion knows this, yet still prepares and if necessary fights no matter the odds. What matters is at that moment they will unleash a level of ferocity and violence unmatched. Yes, there are limitations of course, but the lion lived to a ripe old age not by accident, but by purpose.

The only easy day

In this last Concealed Carry Tactics class we had several lions and a lioness. They were my senior, but they fought hard throughout the whole class and all made tremendous gains. It is no secret our training programs are tough, they are demanding and require commitment on your part. You leave a different person, knowing more about yourself than you did on day one. The physical component is tough, but not nearly as tough as the mental. The mental component requires you to deal with being uncomfortable among others. Let’s just say there was lots of tape used through the class and most came to recognize that as a badge of honor. Obviously, it would be nice not to have your hands chewed up, but I know exactly what they are talking about. Having had my chewed up, cheese grated and otherwise abused, I totally get it.

A beautiful sight

Living a life as a lion is one of the greatest accomplishments one could achieve. It is a process, it doesn’t come overnight and I can assure a true lion never goes out to the proverbial pasture. They would rather die in battle, on their feet giving it there all, than to live their lives on their knees. Yes, it takes a certain mindset to be a lion, but not everyone is built to be one. Some really aren’t cut out to be a lion, they are more cute and cuddly instead. We run a drill where there is physical duress combined with marksmanship objectives. I was inspired as I watched all these lions and lioness give it their all. They never quite, they fought through it and there was a certain level of pride each of them took away as they stood back up and wiped off their hands.

The code of a lion

This was a conversation we had as a group, that the current crop of men are lacking. They have been watered down an in some cases emasculated. The first sign of a lion is personal responsibility, giving an excuse about the way of the world or you are a product of society is complete bullshit. Accept the fact you may not be a lion now, but you will be one soon. The process is divided between respecting traditional values and living life by a code. There is a right and there is a wrong in this world. Stand up for the right and defend against the wrong. Many folks go with the flow because they don’t like conflict, but conflict isn’t always bad.

Sometimes conflict is a good thing, it means you are alive and willing to take a stand, to defend your beliefs, to fight in other words. The real question is have you defined what’s worth fighting for, a real lion would have.