Wishes to an old friend...

[Dr. Dave in da house]

Master Sam Tendencia is an Arnis senior, from the old country. He fought the Japanese with knives in the jungles in World War 2, and was the local version of a folk healer and bone setter. He travelled to Japan after the war to study martial arts and healing arts, where he mastered shiatsu-type methods from a number of backgrounds, and blended it with his native hilot. Sam is aged now, and ailing; news has it he is fighting his battle now with Alzheimers. He was one of those larger than life characters, but as with all men, time is catching up with him.

The hilot that Sam did was a bit like rolfing and chiropractic combined...veeeery deep and painful muscle pressure manipulation, aimed at mobilizing fascial planes wihtin the body, and improving subtle circulation in the solid and hollow organs. He often referred to it simply as "bonesetting".

The work Master Sam did was amazing. He saved my back (I had been unable to walk for over a year secondary to some nasty injuries), helped my girlfriend of the time with a neck problem they wanted to operate for (completely gone), and he helped several members of my family, as well as a family accross the street, whose son was hit by a semi, in a coma for 6 months, and had so many contractures that the PT's were unable to assist him until Sam "loosened him up".

He also had some great stories about challenge matches from around the world. He battled the Japanese in a guerilla war in the Phillipine jungles; told a story of hopping into the back of a troop carrier with 2 machete, then hopping out and the driver never knowing his platoon had been wiped out.

From the atrocities committed by the Japanese in the Phillipines, you might expect him to be racially sore. He wasn't; rather, he travelled to Japan, where he became fast friends with the head of the Kodokan, and they played ping-pong every morning before starting their day. He recounted Mifune sensei and he finishing up their matches, while dozens of guys from around the globe sat outside waiting their turn for a judo challenge match with the master.

While in Japan, Sam trained for and recieved rukudan and shichidan ranks in karate and judo (this was in the post-WW2 era, when you couldn't fake it, or buy it over the internet). He also participated in many challenge matches, blending his arts for victories. He would refer to this in story as, "You come to practish weet Mashter Sham?"

While touring the North American badlands, he was "noticed" by a young American Indian lass on a reservation. They were getting along famously until her promised groom emerged in a rage, and challenged Sam to a fight to the death with a Tomohawk (Sam didn't have a tomohawk, so he picked up a stick from nearby to use). The guy kept saying he was going to kill Sam; tear him up..chop him to bits. They fought, and it lasted merely a blink. He came in with basically a #1, which Sam parried off and side-stepped, then shot a low glancing blow to the knee. The guy hit the ground like a sack of rocks with Sam taunting, "Get up! We have to practice! You're going to tear me up, remember? You can't do that from down there."

Sam also taught Judo, Karate and Baton fighting to police at the Oakland YMCA for a bit in the racially tense 60's era. He was accosted by a couple of youths with switchblades, threatening to cut him up. "You want to practish weet Sham?" He set his gear-bag down, withdrew an escrima stick, and with the speed of a blender popped them on their hands and wrists causing them to drop their weapons in pain, and run away. Again, Sam taunting, "Come back! We just got started! We got to practish!" They came back many other days pestering him to teach them what he did, but he said no, sticking to his guns about teaching law enforcement.

He eventually ended up in the Who's Who of Law Enforcement, for training FBI members in self-defense.

He is one of those amazing men who never made it famous or rich, had his own little anti-social quirks, but should always be remembered.

Be well, Master Tendencia. You are still regarded fondly by many, and will be remembered well.

Dave

[Celtic_Crippler]

[John Brewer]

Thank you for the post.

[Martin Seck]

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[kenpo0324]

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[hemi]

[Ceicei]