By Brian Jessen, Member until 2011

If I thought my first RRCamp was tough, I had to think again. It was nothing compared to my RRCamp No. 2.

Now don't misunderstand me. My first RRCamp was tough, as you can read about in my article about my first RRCamp. But it was hard in a completely different way. At my first RRCamp, I came back to life after a hard fight with myself.

At my RRCamp no. 2, the realities of life dawned on me.

3 weeks after I had been to my first RRCamp, I stood again in the lobby of the Hilton hotel in Malmö, together with the other chief instructors.

The fact that we were going to our second RRCamp came very suddenly and there were quite a few practical things that had to be done to make things fit together in private life and work. But it succeeds, because when you want to, things can be done.

After my first RRCamp I was very positive about life. I had come back to life and found everything lovely, but I had not found the realism in life. I floated on a pink cloud, believing that everything would work out.

On my RRCamp No. 2, I came back down to earth with a bang. Life was still lovely, but life does not live by itself. You have to make an effort and it has to be a big effort which is right. In order to really enjoy life, you have to live life and you can only do that by knowing yourself. How then do you get to know yourself. Yes, I'm finding that out, but one thing is certain, you shouldn't take life, yourself and others for granted.

RRCamp 2 was a continuation of the first RRCamp. It was a continuation of my leadership training to become a better leader of my schools, at work, at home and of myself.

It was an RRCamp where I had to realize that I was not the person I wanted to be. I had not done as I said and said as I did, which is one of our mottos in Shindenkan. I had just enjoyed being able to see life in a positive light and not think about the consequences of one's actions, or rather, the lack of actions.

During my second RRCamp, I saw myself from a side that I don't like, but a side that I am. A side that has always been there, but that I would not realize. A side I hid with a lot of excuses, but now was as obvious as the sun before a clear sky.

I had disappointed others and myself, but who is to blame and responsible?. There is only one person who can take the blame and the responsibility - and that is myself. If I want to continue with my leadership training, continue to learn to know myself from good to bad, then I have to start living life, understand the realities of life and that one's actions (or lack thereof) always have a consequence for good or bad.

So what was RRCamp about and what did I get out of it. It can be said very briefly. One's actions are measured by what one does and not by what one says. Take responsibility for yourself and others.

Does this sound familiar? Yes, these are a few of our values at Shindenkan, which I have heard and said many times, but which are only now starting to really dawn on me.

My first RRCamp gave me my life back, but my 2nd RRCamp gave me a big kick in the rear, gave me a big slap so I woke up and saw the realities of life.

Now it's up to me to live up to the values we have in Shindenkan and not disappoint others and myself anymore. It's time to face the realities of life and start living life for real.

Welcome to capital no. 2. The realities of life.