We all come from somewhere, every academy has their OGs.
The label doesn’t have an agreed upon time and isn’t just a feeling we get, it comes from the new school labelling us. It’s an honor to have OG ancestry, as well as to be OG. Most OGs don’t intuitively feel OG, but they become increasingly referred to as such by the new waves that follow, and slowly become begrudgingly accepted as such.
It’s a natural and connecting part of the great journey, with whatever part we play holding us together. It’s a constant and unbroken thread since the beginning. The newest BJJ player today is directly tied to Milo of ancient Greece, Narcissus of Rome, Khutulun of Mongolia, or some other ancient grappling savage. And as doubtful as it is to be referred to directly in the future as they are today, all of us participate in carrying and connecting the greats of one generation to the next.
If we’re new to the journey, we should take pride in joining the long line of ancestors before us and learn all we can from them, living or passed. We should acknowledge that we’ll be OG someday and will help carry the torch. To soak up the present day, it’s trends and culture, terminology and rule sets and mostly, the training partners to our left and right. Worry less about the future, it will just come. Soak in the now in detail so it’s vivid when we’re referring to these times in the future, When today will be the “old days”.
If we ARE OG, we should also take pride in our ancestors that lifted us to the label, but to also take ownership of our small piece of history and of today’s descendants. Earn that pride in our descendents someday becoming OGs themselves, and keeping the thread unbroken.