Protecting Your Family: Staying Safe in Uncertain Times

by Guro Mike Pana

There is nothing more valuable than human life, and the lives of those we love are of the utmost importance. One of the most fundamental and basic needs we have as human beings is the desire to feel safe and to possess a sense of security. However, with a struggling economy, it's become apparent that physical assaults, home invasions, and other forms of violent crime are on the rise. As the Founder and Chief Instructor of Bayani Warrior Group LLC, an organization dedicated to the teaching and propagation of the Filipino martial arts, I have been fortunate to work with a wide range of clientele that all have one thing in common: to have the skills and the abilities needed to protect themselves and those they love from violent attack. In this article, I will give you some tips as to how to better protect your family from a violent threat.

1) Always Maintain a Sense of Readiness: The most valuable attribute to have when protecting your family is awareness. While many self-defense instructors talk about awareness, very few of them actually train their students to develop their sense of awareness.

The reason why environmental awareness is so important is because violent criminals thrive on catching their victims off guard. Despite what you may see in the movies, criminals do not want to engage in mutual combat with their victims. They would much rather rely on deception and ambushing as a means of hurting their victims. Most criminals wish to attack a person when they are unaware. It's for this reason why many victims of violent crime often say things such as "He came out of nowhere. I had no idea what to do." In reality, the criminals don't just "come out of nowhere". Rather, they rely on catching their victim off-guard, thus giving them the upper-hand in the altercation. The best way to combat this threat is to remain aware of your surroundings so that violent criminals cannot catch you off-guard or unaware. By being aware of your surroundings, you can find the quickest place to escape a violent attack, as well as to know where a potential threat could possibly break into your home. In addition, proper awareness will also help you see everyday items (pens, pencils, hardcover books, hammers, etc.) around you that you can use as improvised self-defense tools in the event of a serious life or death emergency in which you need to protect your family. 

2) Develop a Plan: Right now, try to develop some form of plan to better secure your family's home from would-be intruders, as well as to plan what to do in case your family is facing a threat. Teach your children the importance of locking all windows and doors. If you have an alarm system, make sure that those in your family understand how to turn it on and what to do in the event it goes off. In addition, create a "Safe Room" in your home. A Safe Room is a designated room in the home that those in your home can retreat to in the event of a break-in. The Safe Room should have means of communication to local authorities as well as any items needed to protect you and your family. These items could be self-defense tools, a first aid kit, and flashlights.

3) Seek Proper Training: The only way to truly be prepared for a violent attack is to seek proper training. While martial arts or even firearms training is a good start, the truth is that the vast majority of self-defense programs and martial arts schools do not discuss or explain how to protect or fight alongside your family members. The one martial art that is the exception to this rule is the martial art of Kali. Kali is a very rare and effective martial art from the Philippine Islands that teaches the student how to use weapons and unarmed fighting methods to protect their family from a violent threat. The difference between Kali and other martial arts is that it is a weapons-based fighting art that was originally designed to teach the average man or woman to protect their village or tribe from invasion in a very short period of time. In addition, the vast majority of today's violent crimes involve a weapon, so it is important to understand the use of a weapon if you want to protect yourself or your family against an armed assault. It's for these reasons why Kali is the ideal fighting system for learning how to protect your own family in the event of an emergency. 

In conclusion, the importance of protecting one's family in these seemingly dangerous and uncertain times cannot be ignored. By maintaining a good level of awareness, developing a thorough plan, and by seeking proper training, we can all do a better job of keeping our families safer both inside and outside of the home. 

About the Author: Guro Mike Pana is the CEO and Chief Instructor of Bayani Warrior Group LLC. He is currently teaching family protection through Filipino Kali in Berkeley Heights, New Jersey. For more information, please visit his website at www.bayaniwarrior.com. You can also reach him through E-Mail at bayaniwarrior@gmail.com.