In Between

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to attend a seminar taught by Kyoshi Bill Hayes.  Major Hayes is the author of “My Journey With The Grandmaster”.  I wrote about a previous seminar I attended in the post Get Uncomfortable. 

If you have the opportunity to attend a seminar by Kyoshi Hayes, I highly recommend attending. Make sure to bring paper and a pen…you will need them. If you have not read the book “My Journey With The Grandmaster”....read it. It will change the way you think about training.

I want to share with you one of the concepts presented at the seminar.  The dojo wall was lined with charts, definitions and concepts.  I have pages of notes but one line of text on a chart jumped off the page for me.
Written on the third line of the chart comparing "martial science" to "martial arts" was the following:

Martial science - end of motion bunkai. 
Martial arts...in between motion.

Wow...
Focus on the "in between".

Enjoy your training!


Welcome and thank you to the new Followers of this blog:  Patty Pitman and Yamabushi.  I appreciate all the Readers and Followers!   Thank you to all who comment and share their insights!

Returning to Martial Arts Training After A Break

A few months ago, I wrote a post called Managing A Break in Your Martial Arts Training. I was facing a busy work schedule and I made the decision to put my gym membership on hold. I called my Tai Chi instructor and told him that I was taking a break from class until December. It was a hard decision but one I knew I had to make. I struggled but I maintained my training/teaching schedule in Okinawa Kenpo.

I made a list and planned my break from Tai Chi class. Let's see how I did.

1. Keep in contact with your instructor and the other students. I had minimal contact with my instructor and classmates. I made a few phone calls and sent emails.

2. Stop by for a class...even if it is once a month. This would have been great but it didn't happen.

3. Practice on your own so you don't forget the material. Not often but I did practice the form occasionally.

4. Keep reading and studying. Absolutely!

5. Set a date for your return. Don't leave it open ended. Yes. I set a date for December 1st. I started going to the gym but did not make Tai Chi class due to my schedule.

6. Invite your training partners for an informal workout. Unfortunately...no.

7. I invited my tai chi instructor to teach a guest session at our dojo. Yes. We tried several times to arrange for a visit but could not coordinate schedules. :(

How hard is it to walk back into class after a break in training? It is not hard at all! Last night, I walked back in Tai Chi class, briefly caught up with everyone and started training. It is that easy!

As an instructor, I know many students who take a break never return. I have heard many excuses...I don't remember anything, I am behind the class, family members/friends are ahead of me now, I missed a testing or I'll never catch up. The list could go on and on. The longer the break...the harder people find it to return.

So, if you took a break and want to return to martial arts training...Do it!

Karate Kids

My husband opened his dojo in 1995. I can recall the first two students like it was yesterday. Two neighborhood boys walked the two block up the street to the karate school. We had one mirror, an unfinished ceiling and ugly red flowered carpet left over from the building's bar days. The outside of the building needed new siding and a ramp needed to be installed. You can check out the before and after pictures of the dojo.

It has been 15 years since the first student walked through the door. There have been many kids that took karate lessons over the years. Some kids train for a few months and others for a few years. A few will earn a black belt while other will only last until 9th kyu. We had good times but we also experienced tragedy and loss.

Lately, I have bumping into a few of the kids who took karate with us. I have seen former students at the grocery store, in a mall, on Facebook, at a birthday party, at a indoor football game and even at a community theatre production. Some people I recognize instantly because it has only be a few years since I last saw them. There are some students that I have not seen for over 8 years. Since many years have gone by, I sometimes do not recognize them because they have changed so much.

Children have more opportunities now then when I was a kid. When I was young, sports teams started around 6th grade. Cartoons were only on TV on a Saturday morning. I loved visiting my cousins because they had Pong. There were no soccer clubs and we did not ask to learn karate, dance or gymnastics.

Take for example my daughter. I enrolled her in Gymboree when she was 18 months. It was a Mom and Me class. It was designed to help with socialization skills. What I didn't know was that it was more of a Mom clique. I only lasted one session because I hated it. My daughter took dance lessons for a year, started soccer at 5 years old, choir, Girl Scouts, K4J, saxophone for a year, bible school, two seasons of basketball and community theatre for 5 years. A few weeks ago, she asked if she could give up the saxophone to learn the electic guitar. We went shopping around for lessons and equipment. We walked in a music store and she announced "I want an Amp!". We are still in the inquiry stage on the electric guitar.

A lot of kids with pass through the doors of a karate school. Some will stick with it while others will move on to other activities. As instructors, when we teach a class of kids, we do not know how long they will be in the dojo. It is my hope that their time in the dojo makes an impact no matter how long they train. Perhaps the wrist grabs they learned the first few months of class will be a useful tool one day. Maybe they will remember the kind words of encouragement after they demonstrated an individual kata. It just might help them give a speech in school.

Over the next few months, we will be attending a graduation and two weddings of former "karate kids". I am honored to be invited and look forward to the events.

There is only one downside...It does make me feel a little old. :)