With the constant evolution of the internet and digital technology, the world has changed furiously fast. Many aspects of life are no longer the same. At the age of 51, I know full well if I want to survive another decade I've got to learn a new skill. So I took up aikido.
Of course, things like AI, IoT, blockchain and cryptocurrencies are good to know too. But for someone like me, who doesn't have so much money to worry about, the Japanese martial art is more fun and, hopefully, it might one day save my arse.
People of the digital age tend to be increasingly fierce. The Internet is full of scornful comments. For many, launching verbal assaults on strangers has become a casual habit. One day such impulsive wrath may also be common in real life. It's not impossible.
Having spent six years of my youth training and competing as an amateur boxer, I believe the best way to survive a violent confrontation is to avoid it in the first place. Unlike in the ring, there is no rule on the street nor a referee to stop it when things get too bad. Besides, punching someone with bare fists can hurt not just the person you hit but also yourself. Land a big one on a wrong spot and that can easily break your wrist. Most importantly, I'm not as strong as I was 30 years ago. This old man needs more than the remnants of his boxing experience to stop would-be attackers, or at least make him think twice.
Aikido is my answer.
If I understand it correctly, the concept of aikido is to go with the flow and swiftly gain control of your attacker, using movement techniques that require minimal effort.
Did I mention minimal effort? Yes, that's exactly what I was looking for.
I know a lot of people don't believe in aikido. But many years ago an American friend who used to practise the Japanese martial art when he was younger enlightened me by showing how he could force me to kneel on the ground by using just one hand. He owned me in the blink of an eye, suddenly turning a handshake into a painful wrist lock that was impossible for me to work my way out of.
As a former boxer, I knew right away this seemingly gentle art of self defence is for real. It took me a long time, though, to finally find a dojo (Japanese word for martial-arts studio).
Over the past three months, my sensei Tony Tartaglia, a sixth-degree black belt, his teaching staff and fellow students at his dojo in Bangkok have patiently tried to teach me about aikido philosophy and basic moves. All the while, I've been doing what a lot of newbies do best: feeling confused and rarely doing things right.
So far, I think I've absorbed no more than 20% of what everybody in the class has been trying to teach me. I'm so thankful none of them seemed tired of how slow I learn.
Some of the techniques look easy when the other students do it. But when it's my turn, more often than not it's a different story.
I was told it's OK if I didn't have each step of every technique in my head. "Keep doing it again and again. Finally your body will remember," the sensei said.
Some of what I learned from the classes was eye opening. The little fingers and the ring fingers, for example, play a key role in aikido locks. All my life, I've never paid attention to these limbs except when I had to cut my finger nails. Now I know they could save my life.
Also, if I had thought about stealing the opponent's balance during my boxing years, all those fights I did would have been easier. Learning how to fall is another thing that's new for me. I've been a mountain biker for at least 15 years and have successfully bailed out from quite a few nasty crashes, but falling safely during combat is completely different.
Would this knowledge and the moves I'll learn from the dojo be of any help in a digital world teeming with angry strangers? I don't know. Sensei hasn't taught me yet.
Pongpet Mekloy is the Bangkok Post's travel editor.