We were lucky to catch up with Michael Garcia recently and have shared our conversation below.
Michael, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?
My mission is important to me for two reasons. As a believer, I know that we all have a God given purpose on this earth. To fulfill this purpose I believe is God’s will. And that is more than enough. But the second reason is because I come from a warrior class of people. At least three generations of my family before I have served overseas and have sacrificed so much in service of those who cannot fight for themselves. The stories I tell are my way of honoring that sacrifice.
Michael, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
From the moment I could stand and speak I was an actor. I would act out my favorite movie scenes in the middle of crowded restaurants and family gatherings alike. It didn’t take long for me to become a bonafide professional as at the tender age of five I booked my first acting gig as a big cheese slice in a Fruit of the loom commercial. I’ve been working off and on ever since. With that very unique childhood experience, there came a series of challenges. I was rarely in class as I was either on set or in a casting office, this lead to me always feeling like an outsider when I was in school which lead to my being bullied relentlessly. As the years progressed, and the verbal bullying transformed into physical, my parents saw the necessity for me to know how to defend myself. They enrolled me into boxing. When we discovered that I had a knack for it my father, being a drill instructor and martial arts instructor in the marine corps, wanted for me to broaden my horizons and took it upon himself to teach me the basics of multiple fighting styles. Among these being Jiu-Jitsu and kickboxing. When I arrived in Los Angeles as an adult and spent time at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts to hone my skills I naturally fell in love with fight choreography. From small swords to lightsabers, to me telling a story through the dance of combat is one of the highest forms of acting one can achieve. Especially if you do it well. What I think is unique about what I specialize in is that too wield a sword is a callback to our most celebrated and ancient stories of heroism in humanity. It is both romantic and brutal. What I am most proud of is our traditional martial arts approach to our practices.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
When I was 21 for a little while I became financially responsible for both my then girlfriend, now fiancé, and myself. Los Angeles is not a cheap place to live, even back in 2017. I had to scrape by by working double shifts 5 to 6 days a week. I would work during the day as King Julien at Universal Studios Hollywood and once that shift was done I would scramble over the hill to Yamashiro Hollywood where I would work as the lead host into the very late hours of the evening. One night when I was particularly exhausted, I started to feel a sense of defeat. I thought about my dreams and my purpose for being in this city. i kept thinking about what I “should” be doing as an actor and martial artist at the time. And in that moment I had to make a choice. Do I pack it in? Or do I keep going and keep the faith that one day I will rightly earn those blessings that I seek? As I sit here answering this question, I think about how grateful I really am for that experience. Mainly because as I keep taking those next steps, as I keep leveling up, I’ll always have that time to look back on to remind me of how far I’ve come. And even still when I am lacking in gratitude and I feel like giving up I have that example of that 21 year old kid. He didn’t quit, so why the hell should I?
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
The book that I am currently reading actually is called Bad Mexicans by Kelly Lytle Hernández. This book has offered me a peak into my heritage and it’s most recent history. As I read on it has been both a source of pride and inspiration for me to stay the course and keep fighting. No matter how insurmountable the odds may seem.
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