Well, my own version of air bending(Avatar is awesome!).
But what it didn’t teach me is that 3-d fighters are better than 2-d fighters, nor did it teach me that adding an extra dimension of movement would add extra fun. It also did not teach me to let go of the fact that I can’t throw a hadouken in Tekken (Tobal 2 gave me something close, but it’s just not the same). The Tekken intro movie planted a seed in my head that didn’t sprout until almost a decade later. Because back then, the thought of a barely trained gangly n00b actually punching out a candle was a hopeless dream. And the old school animations were a bit janky and hard to learn from.
Fast forward to a phase in my life where I have some training under my belt, some knowledge in my brain, students to teach and some spare time on my hands. Not to mention the notion of punching out candles.

Ikea tea light air bending! It was tough putting out the first candle ’cause I was unsure of the probability of this working. And the thought of actually executing something I saw in Tekken sounds as silly as me saying “I’ll show you a SHOOORYUKEN!!! Invincible on the way up baby! Fireballz don’t faze me, foo!”
But after what felt like a few dozen hopeless punches… FAP! My first! I felt like I leveled up! I could see the +10 above my head. If youtube was around back then with examples of air bending, I might have punched my first candle out faster. So, after unlocking a power within me I was eager to try it everywhere. At home, at work, at restaurants, on people lighting cigarettes… wherever there was fire I wanted to punch it out. Like I was Smokey the bear and shit. For about two weeks I was even having hot flashes on my right middle knuckle. I was so obsessed I didn’t think twice about punching out my sister’s small birthday cake candles… before she got to blow them out. SORRY SHEELA!
For years my max was 3 candles in a row. And I didn’t break that personal record until I had to teach someone how. Martial arts has taught me that teaching is a great way of deepening one’s own knowledge of something. Because when you teach someone, you need to look at something from different angles and explain everything in as much detail as your student requires. And oftentimes while teaching, when you’re thinking of another way to help your student “get it,” pieces of the puzzle come together better. You can sometimes level up about +10 wisdom.
So you wanna try you say? Okay, remember to keep your distance. Form and accuracy before speed. The front of your fist should “piston push” the air molecules towards the candles. And, it’s not all in the hips, but that’s where it all starts. What’s your record?
Good luck and be careful! Fire burns, and unfortunately, I know first hand that wax is hot, and hard to clean up.




