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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 3 - Advanced)
Topic: BOOK(S) - Begins January 4 / Ends January 11 (01/04/18)
“Index and middle fingers, directly into the eyes – short, sharp jab. That’s all it takes.” Our self-defence instructor was a young, agile police officer, addressing a group of concerned office workers in a major African town. There had been a spate of violent attacks on women in our neighbourhood and we had been offered instruction on how to protect ourselves. She was a cheery, pony-tailed blonde, full of obvious enthusiasm for her work. “Their eyes will be on their cheeks,” she continued, looking at each of us in turn. “Do not, and I repeat, do not stand around looking at your victim in horror. Run, before he has time to shout, run!”

Theoretically, it sounded effective. She went on to tell us how to avoid being raped, robbed or stabbed, with interesting backstories. “You may have heard of my father,” she told us. “He is Detective Inspector Gordon who has written a book on the subject of self-protection for women. He taught me all I know.” Yes, we had heard of him. There had been a couple of promotional articles in the local newspapers after he had made it his mission to protect vulnerable elderly citizens. Unfortunately, one of the victims of a recent attack, well known to me, hadn’t read the book or taken the course his daughter was presenting. I had tried to be sympathetic but how do you relate to someone who has experienced horror beyond your understanding?

Only someone with experience can do that, as we read in the passage of 2 Corinthians 1: 3,4 “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.”

Sometime later, on my way to donate blood, I waited for Traffic Lights to change in order that I could cross a busy ‘One Way’ road. A tap on my window alerted me to a beggar, crumbs on his lips, and hands together in supplication. As I shook my head there was a crash from the passenger side, and my handbag was snatched from the floor of the car then both men hurried away – the wrong way for me to follow, though I tried! No “How to” book could have prepared me for that, only the experience, and perhaps the awareness that being prepared for a car-jacking does not include mere robbery.

“How to write a book in thirty days,” may lead to success of a sort but neglects to mention the number of days required for editing, spell checking or proofreading.

“How to make money”, “How to lose weight” or “How to find a bargain at Auctions” will all contain good theoretical advice but also have potential unexpected practical failure prospects.

For peace of mind on how to avoid stress, there is only one fool-proof “How to” book to help in any situation, and that is the most printed book in production – the Bible.

The central verse tells us: “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man.” Psalm 118:8

How to Gain Wisdom? “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge of the holy One is understanding.”

Now that’s worth knowing. And so practical.
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This article has been read 586 times
Member Comments
Member
Date
Judy Ewald
01/11/18
That was a good read, was wondering how self defense had to do with words or books but it was very effective . With the best advise from the best book.
Toni Babcock 
01/12/18
Yes, self defense methods work well in theory - but not always.
Rachel Rudd
01/15/18
I wondered, too, how a robbery could relate to books and found out it could do that very well. I did have to read the transition part twice to get the transition from that story to the list of how to books, but I like the theoretically speaking idea.
Michelle Gretz
01/18/18
There is always a gap between theory and application. This is a good topic and relevant examples. I might have included how Jesus taught there are angels for the asking in cases of self-defense.