“Excuse me,” I said, turning to Aiki-Doh!-ka for enlightenment. We were at the edge of the tatami watching the class practice kihon dosa.

“That guy, he’s a Cadillac,” he replied, pointing to an energetic aikidoka on the mat.

“Why do you say that?”

“Every time he stops, he bounces, just like a luxury car from the seventies.”

I was about to say I was trying to forget the seventies, but Aiki was already pointing at someone else, a big guy who was trying to get up after receiving a solid throw. He had a made a significant dent in the mat and was struggling to climb out.

“Ford.”

“Ford?”

“Yeah, Ford. Found on road dead.”

That was an oldy, perhaps even pre-dating the seventies. But I was starting to learn his game. I scanned the dojo, then turned to A-D, pointing at someone on the mat, just as he was doing the same, and we pronounced simultaneously:

“Mack truck!” A big burly guy pounding towards his jyu waza partner.

This went on for a while until the Highway Patrol (Sensei!) told us to move on…

What kind of car are you?

 Ando Sensei’s has an astounding ability to surf his partner’s energy at the precise point of balance. His ability to feel this, coupled with his incredible timing, made his aikido beautiful and inspiring indeed.

His teaching was clear and supportive, and sprinkled with good humor, making for an atmosphere of great positivity that was very conducive for practice. On a personal note, when asked what was the most difficult experience  as uchideshi, he replied, laughing, “teaching aikido to kindergarten kids,” a task he was assigned for several years.

Finally, he stated many times that mastery takes time and practice, and to be gently patient with oneself on the mat - what may not make sense now will, in time, become clear.

And so I have hope that one day I’ll be able to surf too…

Kevin

We decided that an intervention was required, and bundled him into a car without telling him where we were going, just that it would be a surprise. A couple of hours later, we arrived in the big city and found our way to a well established dojo that was hosting a clinic by one of A-D’s idols.

It proved to be the perfect tonic as he spent the entire weekend (except for a brief visit to the emergency room and the afternoon that he got lost on the subway) immersed in his favourite activity, surrounded by people who were as passionate about aikido as he is. (Well, almost.)

Now he’s fresh and cheerful (and sporting a few new duct tape patches on his dogi) and seeing daffodils every time he looks out the window.

May your irimi into spring be just as joyful!

Kevin

After my first reaction of “Yikes!”, I realized that I had asked for it (having set the goal of testing for nidan sometime this year, thinking that towards the end of the year was reasonable), and so I have the choice of accepting that this is the universe’s way of giving me what I asked for.

That being the case, it follows that I also have the choices of trusting the universe in providing the right experience at the right time, trusting Sensei’sjudgment, and trusting that I can rise to the challenge.

In other words, perhaps ’surprises’, for me, are merely opportunities for practicing trust…

May your life be full of ’surprises’ too…

Kevin

“We’ll try something new,” he announced.

In a few moments the familiar strains of the “Blue Danube Waltz” flooded the room and he began to do shumatsa dosa ichi in - well, in waltz time.

After standing agog for a few moments, I decided to give it a try, praying that my wife wouldn’t find out - she’s been trying to get me to take ballroom dancing for years.

Darned if it didn’t help - and it was fun, too!

A-D kept changing the music for each different exercise:

“Ode to Joy” for tai no henko ichi  and ni, “Dance of the Hours” (”Hello mudder, hello fadder. Here I am in Camp Granada” kept running through my mind!) for elbow power No. 1 and 2, and - well, you get the idea.

Then he put on “Pennies From Heaven” and we did a few sit-down breakfalls. I started to get a bit irritated when he kept telling me to relax and be “light as a penny”, but it passed.

Finally, he put on “Carmina Burana” and declared “Now we practicejyu waza!” 

Oh well - at least he didn’t make me wear one of those Viking helmets…

K

This happened partly because of the repetition and simplicity of the exercise, and partly because I found a focus for my attention that allowed most of my mind chatter to fall away (I had a good partner, too!). Sensei had made us mindful of keeping our lead hand in our centre as we pivoted, and as time passed I began to feel that my hand was actually cradling something very precious.

After a time, I realized what it was:

The precious jewel of my partner’s spirit as she poured her energy and attention into the exercise…

This is but one reason why I love aikido…

Kevin

A recent comment by a fellow aikidoka - “My throws are always better when you’re my uke” - was very encouraging because I have been learning recently how to ‘lead’ shite and therefore help them with their technique, and I began to re-focus on the true role of uke - helping shite.

This is particularly useful when working with newer students. It’s more than being relaxed and compliant; it’s allowing my knowledge of the technique to let me slightly anticipate my partner and therefore guide their body into the correct positions as we move through the steps along the way.

For example, if I’m grabbing their wrist and they are shuffling off to the corner to take my balance and they are not moving far enough, or at a sharp enough angle, I take the initiative to move to the ‘right’ spot. Since they’ve got hold of me, they have to come too. This is often very subtle and I try and do it in such a way as to make the changes unnoticable to my partner - I just watch for the smile.

Things that can help you improve your ukemi:

Stay relaxed - not only will this make things easier for your partner, you’ll reduce the potential for injury.

Be alert - things won’t always unfold they way you want them to.

Always face your partner - this will almost always be the safest relationship with your partner.

Look into their eyes - this will help you stay engaged.

Give lots of energy - your partner can do their best when they have something to work with.

And think about this:

What would our world be like if we put that kind of attention on all of our relationships?

Best wishes for an awesome 2010!

Kevin

“The Twelve Days of Shinsa“

(Sung to the tune of “The Twelve Days of Christmas”)

On the first day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“Are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

On the second day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“Think carefully, are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

On the third day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“That is not nikajo, think carefully, are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

On the fourth day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“Work on your ukemi, that is not nikajo, think carefully, are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

On the fifth day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“You call that kamae?

Work on your ukemi, that is not nikajo, think carefully, are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

On the sixth day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“More suriashi!

You call that kamae?

Work on your ukemi, that is not nikajo, think carefully, are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

On the seventh day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“Be a better uke, more suriashi!

You call that kamae?

Work on your ukemi, that is not nikajo, think carefully, are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

On the eighth day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“Why don’t you ki-ai, be a better uke, more suriashi!

You call that kamae?

Work on your ukemi, that is not nikajo, think carefully, are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

On the ninth day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“Keep moving forward, why don’t you ki-ai, be a better uke, more suriashi!

You call that kamae?

Work on your ukemi, that is not nikajo, think carefully, are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

On the tenth day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“It’s elbow power, keep moving forward, why don’t you ki-ai, be a better uke, more suriashi!

You call that kamae?

Work on your ukemi, that is not nikajo, think carefully, are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

On the eleventh day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“Stop using muscle, it’s elbow power, keep moving forward, why don’t you ki-ai, be a better uke, more suriashi!

You call that kamae?

Work on your ukemi, that is not nikajo, think carefully, are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

On the twelfth day of shinsa, my sensei said to me,

“Let’s see some zanshin, stop using muscle, it’s elbow power, keep moving forward, why don’t you ki-ai, be a better uke, more suriashi!

You call that kamae?

Work on your ukemi, that is not nikajo, think carefully, are you sure you’re prepared to test?”

Only one more sleep to testing day…

Kevin

Life is full of things that we believe that are not true. Some, like the hope that winter will be delayed indefinitely are relatively harmless and are easily let go of with a sigh and a smile. Others, like the belief that the pain of the loss of a loved one will never end, or the anguish we feel when we believe we can’t change, even when we know we have to, are harder to let go of.

Aikido gives us many tools to gather the spiritual ‘oomph’ we need to let go of our illusions and continue to move forward into a life free of fear and doubt. Let me give you an example:

Let’s say, like me, you’re making a lifestyle change like quitting smoking. You may face many moments of doubt that sap your belief in a positive outcome. Keep your bokken handy, and when that feeling arises, slash it to smithereens with a few dozen shomen cuts.

Can’t swing your bokken around at work? Practice shin ko kyu, or any breathing exercise, until the anxiety has been dispersed. 

Need to ‘change state’? Tori fune undo, or rowing exercise, will help you move out of a wishy-washy space and hone your resolve anew.

And last but not least - go to class as much as you can…

Kevin

After checking my shorts, I turned around to see A-D grinning at me through a gentle rain of crimson and gold leaves.

“Aiki, what the…”

“I was scaring the leaves off the tree with a ki-ai,” he explained, going on to tell me that he wanted to get all  the leaves gathered up today.

“I came over for a peaceful afternoon A-D - gimme a break!”

He assured me he’d behave and we continued to work until we had the entire back yard tidied up, resulting in a humongous pile of leaves. I assumed we’d bag them all up, but Aiki-Doh!-ka insisted it was a perfect opportunity to practice hyaku ukemi. Well, I have to admit, it was kind of fun, although we had to do a bit more raking afterwards.

After we’d finished, he disappeared into the house - I presumed to get some beer - only to return carrying the mother of all pumpkins, his katana trailing from his belt.

“Now we practice do giri,”  he said, an eager grin splitting his face from ear to ear.

That, thank goodness, is when my cell phone rang…

Happy Halloween!

Kevin