The other day, I was fencing at a tournament at the Maryland Fencing Club, and noticed that the salle’s head coach, Greg Paye had placed the Desiderata displayed on his wall. As I waited to be called for my direct elimination matches, I read through the Desiderata a few times, soaking in the words and appreciating their applicability both to fencing and to life.

Perusing the Desiderata, I was inspired to create a fencing code of honor, one that (I hope) I have applied both to myself as a coach and to my students through the years. Here it is. I hope this is of use to the fencing community.

I am a fencer – this is my code.