By Ajarn Chai Sirisute
Ever since I was young I have always loved and respected the late King of Thailand because I have seen how hard The Royal Couple work for the people of Thailand. Many people don’t understand his determined efforts for his countrymen, they think that when you are a King you don’t have to do anything. They can’t possibly comprehend his duties and this is just a small measure in my own way of trying to pay back His Majesty and my country for what they have done for me. [Related: 14 King Bhumipol Adulyadej Facts Every Thai Knows (and you should too)]
One can’t begin to imagine all of the issues that His (late) Majesty, Rama IX, King Bhumipol Adulyadej had to deal with, from politics to the ordinary needs of his people. Sometimes you have to think about political agendas and other times you have to think about the people. “When I was back home in Thailand, I saw His Majesty on TV telling us that as a nation we should find ways of helping each other, while the politicians are busy fighting each other.”
These are the same issues affecting students and instructors in Muay Thai. The conflict usually happens after the student learns a martial art, then the student and teacher often want to battle it out. Not physically, but politically. Students and teachers may go back and forth about the best ways to move forward and often lose sight of what is most important – what is best for their students?
We all need to work towards the betterment of the whole. The TBA needs leaders that will find common ground instead of fighting for a small piece of it. Finding common ground can be difficult and as we’ve seen with the late and great king of Thailand, there will be times when as leaders when we could argue, but instead, let’s aim to help each other.
I AM SO HAPPY TO BE BORN IN THE TIME OF KING NUMBER 9,
Ajarn Chai Sirisute
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