Humans of Wing Chun: Harry Schut

A dream for the future

If I had to describe myself, I would say that I am open, respectful and empathetic. I am 60 years old, have a 25 year old son and met my girl Claudia 8 years ago. I love her; she is loving, has a good sense of humor and is always cheerful. Together we make plans for a new life after my early retirement, a period that I am already looking forward to and for which we are preparing a lot.

Exploring the world

My hobbies are music, cooking and traveling. I used to be able to share my passion for music a lot with my cousins. We wore denim jackets at the time and blues music dominated our lives. That period shaped me and determined how I viewed the world as a boy. I loved going out with my guitar, and I always played in a band. I recently auditioned again, of course for a blues band. I like to cook for my girl, and traveling is really a shared passion of ours. We like to discover the world and get to know new people all the time. The nice thing for me is that I don't have to figure anything out myself when we travel. She loves preparing for the trip and figuring everything out, and I come along to enjoy it together. Our plan for the future has also been shaped by our passion for travel.

Cleaning up and preparing

Every day I am thinking about the future and thinking about what we can do once we live in Spain. I am now sorting out all my stuff to decide which things can come with us and what can go. For example, I am revisiting certain DVDs and giving away what I don't necessarily need to keep.

Movies that I've watched countless times, but that are definitely going with me, include: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, House of Flying Daggers, the Star Trek films, Lord of the Rings and Dune. It's great to revisit my collection and then make others happy with the films I want to give away.

As fun as it is, the move is also exciting. I do sometimes worry about whether we will have enough money soon, but it will all work out in the end. We are moving into a new life, a future for us together.

The continuation of the interview with Harry will soon be available here!

Text and photos by: Robine Hillen

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