One of the neatest things in cinema was when David Carradine in the old Kung Fu TV series walked on the rice paper. Rice paper is extremely thin, and the moisture on the sole of the foot, along with the weight of the body, was enough to tear the stuff. The legend, of course, was there is this thing called Light Kung Fu, where one could actually make the body lighter, maybe even levitate it.
Now, myself and all the guys in the neighborhood would watch David Carradine, Kwai Chang Caine as he was known on TV, and wish we had a kung fu master to teach us how to walk on rice paper. Why, there was no end to the things we could do if we only knew Light Kung Fu! The neighborhood bullies would be nothing if we had that awesome power!
So, a little thought about what Kawi Chang Caine was doing on the TV show, a little yankee ingenuity, and we came up with a plan. Rolll a roll of toilet paper out on a linoleum surface. Now, with an eyedropper, put a small drop of water exactly in the middle of each square of toilet tissue. Now, meditate and summon the chi, it was time to walk the walk.
We thought that rice paper would be like wet toilet paper, you see. So we tried out our kung fu steps, and...the thin stuff was ripped apart. Hmmmmm.
Try it again, placing the foot and not turning it at all. Squoosh, squoosh! Darn stuff just tore apart.
So we tried arranging a long row of chairs along the sides of the unrolled toilet tissue, and we tried supporting ourselves with a little arm strength as we walked our kung fu walk. Squish, rip, and oh my good lard! This rice paper stuff was tougher, uh, softer, than we thought.
Now, in the end, we never did manage to walk the light kung fu walk, and not tear the filmy tissue into shreds. And, to be truthful, I don't think it is possible to do, toilet paper is supposed to dissolve in water, and rice paper, well, who knows what the heck rice paper is for, or even looks like. But something amazing happened because of our interest in being able to do what the old masters did, even if they were only actors on the tube.
We worked out long hours. In between trying out our light kung fu, we practicing kicking and blocking, we did our forms again and again. In essence, though we never walked the light kung fu walk, we became masters through another route, through dedication and long hard work and by pursuing dreams! - 30300
Now, myself and all the guys in the neighborhood would watch David Carradine, Kwai Chang Caine as he was known on TV, and wish we had a kung fu master to teach us how to walk on rice paper. Why, there was no end to the things we could do if we only knew Light Kung Fu! The neighborhood bullies would be nothing if we had that awesome power!
So, a little thought about what Kawi Chang Caine was doing on the TV show, a little yankee ingenuity, and we came up with a plan. Rolll a roll of toilet paper out on a linoleum surface. Now, with an eyedropper, put a small drop of water exactly in the middle of each square of toilet tissue. Now, meditate and summon the chi, it was time to walk the walk.
We thought that rice paper would be like wet toilet paper, you see. So we tried out our kung fu steps, and...the thin stuff was ripped apart. Hmmmmm.
Try it again, placing the foot and not turning it at all. Squoosh, squoosh! Darn stuff just tore apart.
So we tried arranging a long row of chairs along the sides of the unrolled toilet tissue, and we tried supporting ourselves with a little arm strength as we walked our kung fu walk. Squish, rip, and oh my good lard! This rice paper stuff was tougher, uh, softer, than we thought.
Now, in the end, we never did manage to walk the light kung fu walk, and not tear the filmy tissue into shreds. And, to be truthful, I don't think it is possible to do, toilet paper is supposed to dissolve in water, and rice paper, well, who knows what the heck rice paper is for, or even looks like. But something amazing happened because of our interest in being able to do what the old masters did, even if they were only actors on the tube.
We worked out long hours. In between trying out our light kung fu, we practicing kicking and blocking, we did our forms again and again. In essence, though we never walked the light kung fu walk, we became masters through another route, through dedication and long hard work and by pursuing dreams! - 30300
About the Author:
Al Case has studied martial arts for 4O years. A writer for the magazines since'81, he is the founder of matrixing technology and neutronics. You can walk on rice paper with him, or, least get a free ebook, at Monster Martial Arts.
