A Breeze in Phuket

"97, 98, 99...," after inhaling a quick grasp of air, Kenny drove his right shin into the black mounted training bag which dangled in front of him, which returned a loud resounding 'thud' through the spare training room of his apartment. 

Training one's body was key to living a healthy life, though training one's mind was key to knowing thyself.' Words from his Renshi, or '6th' Dan in the world of karate. Though the last time Kenny had heard these words was sometime around fifth grade in school, which now brought him to the age of 29 this July. It was only a couple of sleepless nights ago (usually from staying up late to watch latest American MMA match on TV), that the words had suddenly resurfaced in his mind. Like many things in life, they don't hit you until you cross a certain bridge in life. But For Kenny, he felt the most important things he ought to learn, almost always came too late for him.

His present work-life routine wasn't anything special to brag about either. Kenny would work as part-time assistant to the martial arts head at a gym that was about a 10-minute train ride from his two-bedroom apartment in Frankston South, with not many possessions inside thanks to his minimalistic lifestyle. He taught mainly kids whose parents dropped them off afterschool, as well as weekends. Other days he would take early morning to late afternoon shifts at a warehouse performing picking and packing duties. It wasn't particular hard work for Kenny, his work was always well received but never received a promotion either.

However, it didn't matter anymore, as the following day Kenny handed in his formal resignation to his boss, who who looked disappointed at first but reluctantly accepted it.

The following Saturday morning, Kenny could finally devote his working hours to helping the young kids at the gym. He wouldn't teach them any fancy or demanding techniques, nor did the head instructor. But he would often guide them on movement. How to move and rotate one's body before delivering a strike, whether it be soft or hard. This was essential to everything including our state of mind and body leading up to a fight, during the fight, and after the fight. 'How one practice's martial arts is how one approaches anything in life', as his past Renshi would often say to his pupils.

There were about nine to ten kids in total in the class, mostly aged around four to eleven years of age. They were mostly yellow belts, one was blue and the oldest was a brown belt and was maybe a few months off from attaining his black. After hi-fiving all the kids as they made their way to their parents would wait for them near the entrance, Kenny sighed, wiping off the sweat from his brow (not that anyone could see it) and fixed the sleeve of his black gi; the colour which signified a qualified instructor before changing back into his casual clothes. As he was about to head to the cafe, a But then a young lady, with blonde hair and hazel eyes, no older than 25 approached him.

"Kenny right?" the lady asked, lowering her shades. 

"Yes, that's me?" Kenny replied.

"I've heard quite a bit about you." Name's Byrne. With an 'e'."

"As in... Brynhilld?" Kenny was genuinely curious.

Though his lips were stuck trying to form the last part of the name, he felt a bit embarrassed.

"Brynhildr?" She interjected, with a hint of curiosity. "Now that's a name I haven't heard in a long while." I don't remember too much about her, but I used to read stories about her when I was little, the shieldmaiden, and the goddess of war from Norse legend. Pretty cool right?"

Bryne looked like she was able to go on a spiel, as if recalling her favorite tv show but stopped herself. "I've actually been wanting to approach you on a number of occasions but, well..."

Kenny could tell she was on the spot, so he offered to continue their conversation by heading to the nearby cafe, since he was planning head there anyway, to which she accepted with a spontaneous "sure!"

They made their way to the adjacent cafe by the gym.

"My daughter was also in your health-ed class." Bryne said, looking down the menu. "She's so into Karate. Zen-do-kai. I can tell by the way she tries to explain the moves she's learned. It's so adorable! "She very much enjoys your class." Her daughter stayed with some of other kids back at the gym. She was around 8 years old and had golden curls, and energetic other kids their age.

"She's a diligent that one." Kenny added. He looked at her purse and down to her jeans. He could tell from experience that she was a not a local but had inking that she had a 'purpose'. She had a good eye, and good intuition, that much was clear.

Bryne wore a simple white sleeved blouse and denim jeans. Her hair tips sported shades of blond just lighter than the rest, which just barely touched her shoulders. It gave a very clean and rather model-like presentation yet, even in the light spring breeze she emanated this carefree kind of vibe.

Her father left her during her kindergarten years, and her mother had a chronic illness, and since Byrne was a close friend of the mother, she had decided to help the daughter.

"You got some spare time nowadays right?" she said, eyeing his companion with a rather mischievous glint as cupped her hand in her chin. Kenny knew he there was no hiding, referring to his recent resignation from his warehouse job. How she knew, Kenny didn't know but decided not to question it. 

Kenny looked at the cup of tea and watched the air wither into the late morning bloom before asking, "Are you worried by any chance?"

"That, well I wouldn't be a good assistant if I wasn't." Kenny laughed.

Kenny had no idea how long he planned to stay there at the dojo as an assistant.

"You know much about Thailand by chance?"

Kenny didn't see anything wrong with the offer except for one thing, "Well I've never been there."

A mix of surprise and some relief crossed Byrne's face.

"Well all the more reason to consider it, no?" she said as she took a mouthful of coffee, took an envelope from her shoulder bag, and placed it ever so gently onto the table. It was white as feather and had a circular red seal attached. 

"To be straightforward, I need a travel companion, there will be a martial arts display ceremony and I'd very much like you to come."

Bryne explained the itinerary, the proposed vacation would last over five days, though the ceremony would commence on the second day.

"I've already arranged tickets, and I will however cover all the other nitty-gritty expenses. She took a rather generous gulp of his coffee before continuing. I know I kind of put you on the spot, so feel free to decline."

Kenny gently placed in the envelope into his hands and stared at it for a few second before responding, "I'll think about it." 

"Thank you," she said as she placed one hand on his sleeve in one careful motion, "if you have any questions, and I mean 'any', please ask away.

"No such thing as dumb question, right?" 

"Exactly."

Kenny looked up at the sky, where there was not a cloud in sight. "I don't know if this is right timing, maybe it is, but even then I feel like I'm unsure of so many things. I don't really know what I've been training for really, whether it's for something important or not." He wanted to say more but the words just wouldn't come out.

Noticing this, Bryne took a second to ponder Kenny's words before looking at her surroundings, then back to him.

"The things we choose to treasure, it's merely a thought we chose of our own making, a human construct. But- that doesn't make it any less important. Otherwise, the both of us wouldn't be sitting next to each other having this very conversation." She finished her words with a smile.

Kenny didn't know how to respond but, or if it made any real sense but he felt a sense of something powerful within him that he hadn't felt in a long time.

Later that night, Kenny flopped onto his bed and was immediately welcomed a rush of warmth as he whipped the blanket over his body. It was only Autumn, yet the outdoor moonlight and his lingering doubt gave extra weight to the night chill. It was as his feet had travelled over a deserted baseball field and back.

His mind suddenly wandered back to his childhood days. How he would listlessly look up to sky during lunch break while all the other kids would be mess around without a care in world. Of course, he never forgot the treatment from some of his classmates when it came to his half Vietnamese-Australian background which didn't exactly make him many friends. So he turned to a local club which trained in karate and various styles including kickboxing, to which his mother reluctantly accepted. One thing Kenny never skipped out on as a kid was his weekend quest to spar with the grand oak in that stood in the corner his backyard, which he would practice his kick and knee routine, however clumsy his form at the time seemed.

At first his mother would tell him to stop after ten seconds. The day after, she would try to urge him to stop after one minute. Eventually it grew to ten minutes then thirty. As Autumn rolled by, his mother would inspect his leg to see if he had any wounds, but never told him to stop. Instead, she would make sure he felt full after eating.

When Winter suddenly marched in just weeks after Kenny's 9th birthday, Kenny's mother had passed away from an unknown illness. Did she finally accept it, or did she silently give up on persuading him to stop on such mindless kicking? To this day, the answer had still eluded him.

He stared up at the ceiling of his bedroom. 'Whatever happens, I'll win in my own way.' He mulled over it again. But his mind traced back to the image of Bryne, and how she ran her slender fingers through her windswept hair slide. Kenny reached out for the ticket sitting on lamp desk by his bedside. It was already decided, where his journey would take him and how he forge his path the following day.

The following morning, he made all the necessary preparations, sending a memo to his fellow instructor that he would take some time off, and diligently packed all the essentials he could into his single black airport travel case. Kenny had been on a number of spontaneous trips, mainly for work. But this would mark the first time that he would prepare for a flight on such short notice and on such a less-than concrete goal. But to him, this was more than just. An ideal. One he had to chase no matter what. "Well, the preparations ain't gonna fix itself," Kenny said to himself, and as a wave of excitement swelled through him.

*

After taking in a 10 hour flight from Melbourne airport to Bangkok, Kenny would catch an overnight bus ride from airport would take him straight to Phuket Island.

As soon as he arrived, he and several other travelers were greeted by a pristine beach with a crystal blue waves. After walking the sand for a couple of minutes a familiar voice called out,

"Heya!" It was Bryne. She wore shades and a sleeveless white top and summer skirt which highlighted her upper physique. She seemed giddier than usual, but she knew how to reign it in. 

"Part of me thought you wouldn't actually come. But I had this feeling- no more intuition that you would come."

"Not sure if I sure I should be worried." Kenny joked.

Bryne patted his arm, smiling. Kenny felt relieved, especially after his long bus ride journey, though he noticed one of the locals, possibly a friend standing next to her.

"Oh this is Chai by the way," Bryne said, introducing the man next standing beside her.

"Nice, very nice to meet you." Chai replied, grasping his hands together in praying manner. He looked to be around 50 but the wrinkles around his cheeks gave him a more youthful look. He was bald with a certain gleam in his brown eyes. If it weren't for his casual yellow t-shirt and white shorts, Kenny would've mistaken him for a monk. It was clear English was not the man's first language, but both his tone and local accent gave off a rather soothing feeling. "I'd very much like to show you around, Mr. Phan, yes?"

Bryne that to them both a wave of the hand which gestured that she would return rather soon as she went to mingle with the other locals.

 "I heard many a great stories from Ms. Nyland."

"Well, that kind of makes worried," Kenny jested.

"No, no," Chai insisted, waving his hand around as if to he were stopping fumes from the nearby fireplace from reaching his guest." Feel free to make any requests, it's not often Ms. Nyland brings along a guest. Especially one journeying from afar like yourself. 

"So, are will we watching some training or something?"

"Ah yes. But the most important thing is that you enjoy yourself", he pointed to the various food stalls lined across the back of the beach which connected all the way up to the market streets further inland.

"So Nyland was her last name." Kenny thought to himself, smiling. "It suits her."

To think that only a mere two days ago, he was unloading cardboard boxes, one after another without really knowing what the world would hold the next day. But as the scene of events unfolded right before Kenny's eyes, he felt as if he were transported to some far-off corner of the universe. A place where fantastical beasts, made up of varying shapes and sizes, some large like elephants that would watch over the dining tables as the locals prepared to serve all sort of fresh delicacies, others; were as small as pigeons that would soar the around the fireplace; all conjured from the lively dance of locals meshed with the calm song of the sea. A mix of orange, crimson and blue rolled through the evening sky.

The open ceremony match is about to start," Chai said, looking straight ahead. "Newcomers, warriors such as yourself are highly encouraged to take part. After all, Ms. Nyland will surely be watching." Chai claimed, wearing his usual warm smile, but bowed his head forward in a more graceful motion than usual.

Chai explained all the rules in a calm but succinct manner. The fight almost mirrored that of typical Thai kickboxing matches, full hands-on contact with grappling permitted, but no contact to vital areas were allowed. Though something was different. Kenny watched the two fighters on stage duke it out, from an ordinary bystander viewpoint it looked like any other fight; one person inching either close or further away to try in get a hit in while waiting for the precise 'opening'. However, Kenny, seemed as if they both were innately aware of each's movements, as if it were a dance. He was sure all the locals were obviously aware of this. The familiarity of tradition.

Kenny shot a quick glance past his shoulders; but he couldn’t quite spot her figure through the lively commotion. But based on Chai's tone, he knew that he words were truth. Kenny felt as if someone, somewhere was watching him. And just before Kenny could come up with some kind retort in his mind, a vivid image of a familiar figure of a warrior, posing heroically with a spear in hand, had emerged in the forefront of his mind. A Valkyrie. Brynhildr. 'Why now of times?' he suddenly thought. But Kenny was suddenly brought back to reality as the commotion ahead, with ceremonial songs and lively chanting grew louder.

Kenny ambled just behind the crowd of onlookers, which consisted of mostly of locals who seemed both familiar and energized by the scene ahead; and of course, a few foreign tourists such as Kenny himself. Though Bryne was nowhere to be seen.

"We welcome, all warriors, past, present and future on the land we stand on today..." The announcer called out.

Pairs of ceremonial sticks rhythmically banged against the multiple sets of drums which bellowed through the evening air. Kenny took it all in, and as his feet remained firmly planted into the sand, he experienced an indescribable feeling deep within him. Something deeply profound. Like a moth being drawn to a light, he unconsciously proceeded to stride toward the stage, each step with building onto the other with newly found purpose. Just before he reached the ivory steps, no higher than half a metre, he was stood five metres away from his opponent. He was slightly larger in build, toned muscles with tanned skin, and was wearing a stern but neutral expression on his face. A veteran Thai warrior. The crowd seemed to be cheering both participants on.

A calm breeze grazed his skin, for the first time in very long time a familiar feeling he had long forgotten resurged, he walked into spotlight, all semblance of noise from the outside world drowned out. His feet came to a still as he faced his opponent, eyes locked on the horizon ahead- ready for this very moment.