Thankful

 

(with a little more wood flooring and some tatami mats, this is where my mind practices..)

while away from the dojo for the thanksgiving holiday, may you enjoy some mental training, some moments reflecting on things you are thankful for, and some wonderful time with your family. 

osu!

To Begin..

Ok, we all have a love-hate relationship with testing. Don't we? Or is it just me? I mean, I see how it's important.. not for rank, but more for always pushing yourself. Never allowing yourself to become stagnant, stuck, to plateau for too long.

I've been neglectful, again, of this blog-that believe it or not-I do really love. But just like my houseplants, I don't bring the watering can to you often enough. (Hopefully you're more of the cacti variety and haven't wilted much. Ahem.) This time my excuse, besides living life, raising a baby who has now grown into a full time running, climbing, talking toddler, deciding upon a relocation to the other side of the country and all the real estate crapola involved in that, is the aikido-side of my brain has been focused on November. My Shodan test.

It's been a long time coming and I'm really excited and am looking forward to testing. Of course part of me simply can't wait for it to be over. And that part of me is the one that knows there is SO much to know, I can barely be scratching the surface. But for good reason, we look at Shodan as "the beginning." And like all testing, kyu, dan, schoolwork etc.. it's more about the preparation than the test itself. It's all the hours training, studying, and practicing. We love the adrenaline that surges during tests, we hate the nervous stomach that comes along with it. But like most things, you'll walk away having gotten out of it what you put into it.
Hopefully come November 20th, I will have started on my path.
The beginning.

How about you guys? How do you feel about testing?
How does your dojo award rank?
Anyone testing soon and want to share their feelings? I'd love to hear...

Stillness

Inspired by a friend's "Quiet Posts," I wanted to do a series of simple, silent posts. I think a lot can be said without words and likewise, so much of aikido is learned in silence. So much is learned through feeling, rather than through dissection and analyzing. Therefore, on occasion, I plan on throwing in these simple posts, mainly wordless, but hopefully a great marinade for thought and reflection.

Imagine

I think one of the best ways to live your life and keep you always excitedly looking forward to the future, is by daydreaming. Come on, we've all done it.. sitting in math class in 4th grade, thinking about hearing that final bell ring and running home to play outside. Or 10th grade, that really cute boy (or girl) a few rows away. Or as an adult, sitting in a meeting at work, imagining yourself carving some beautiful figure 8's with your skis down a great run in the Rockies. Daydreaming provides the imagination an outlet. Let's you imagine the beauty of what you'd love to have, what you'd love to do. It let's you dream.

One of my favorite daydreams is thinking about the day I have my own dojo. I love to envision it: surrounded and canopied by big old trees, maybe a stream nearby, built from beautiful wood, and wide, wide open. A simple but beautiful structure. No walls..just open air. So you can feel one with nature, bowing in and out, you're bowing to everything around you...feel the breeze as you're training... you feel the 'harmony' in everything, everywhere. You feel empowered, rejuvenated, alive, and that everything and everyone are connected.
I often daydream about my dojo. It makes me happy. Even if I never get around to building this wonderful space, it already exists in my mind. And I love visiting it. If I ever do get around to building it before the ripe-old age I hope I'm intended to live to, I hope you'll all come train with me there. How wonderful that would be.

I thought about including a picture of a similar building, but then it would distract from my vision. Because any picture that I'd include, that building already exists, and has characteristics that may be similar but are also different from the one in my mind. Besides, in reading this entry, you've likely started to imagine what I've described, and including a picture would distract from your ability to imagine.

So..
big old trees, with thick bark and lucious green canopying leaves.
simple strong wooden structure.
no walls.
nearby running creek.
inviting.

imagine.

Sakura Sunday

This past Sunday was the annual Cherry Blossom Festival, or Sakura Sunday, in Philadelphia. Every year our dojo participates in demonstrating aikido for all the festival goers. Basically it's the one time we get to show the public an otherwise pretty private art. This year the weather was a bit cooler, but nonetheless, a beautiful day. The cherry trees were in full bloom, the demonstration went wonderfully and the company and training of my fellow aikidoka, marked the start of a wonderful spring. Hope to see you there next year!