Here’s a hypothetical scenario. Someone is planning an important dinner and business partners will be there, as well as the boss. The person gets ready and dress with their best clothing. They check their teeth, hair and any other physical defect. And practice smiling correctly, just for good measure. When they arrive, there is no […]
Power of a Beginner? How can that be? They are a beginner afterall and don’t know anything. However, The Beginner’s Mind is such a wonderful thing! It is the first of the Five Minds – Shoshin. Everyone is in such a hurry to “master” techniques or any particular subject. They seldom take the time to
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I heard an interesting thing from Dr Sydnee McElroy on her podcast Sawbones. In one of the later episodes she mentions that human bodies are living chemical labs, at all times churning chemical reactions back and forth. This means, she explains, that we are at constant chemical imbalance, which causes the reactions to happen: there
Is Balance the Right Word? Read More »
We hear so often a parent say that they have an anxious child. One who isn’t confident and tends to be a loner. Karate is often a means to help with anxiety and confidence, but there are some things to consider before any training can really help your child. Parents help too much? Very often
I started training martial arts in 1979, but this past Saturday, July 29th, 2023 at the Bluegrass Games was only the third tournament I’ve competed in. My first art was Tang Soo Do, a Korean kicking-heavy style that I trained in for about 2 1/2 years, but I never competed for reasons I’ll explain later.
Don’t Stop – Tournament Musings Read More »
I had an enlightening conversation about how the Kiai was embarrassing last week. Karate has been an interesting ride because I never expected this level of introspection. Sure, I started out wanting to be a stronger and better person, but I never quite realized how hard it would be. Looking at myself in the mirror,
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The way stars move around the Milky Way galaxy in long spiral arms is a beautiful display of orbital dynamics. The interstellar traffic jams speed up and slow down on their orbit around the center of a large, dense mass. It is impossible to explain, given humanity’s current understanding of gravity, unless there’s a heck
The Dark Matter of Karate Read More »
Recently, I had the immense pleasure to come down to Kentuckiana Shotokan Karate Do to present a workshop on Filipino martial arts, particularly focusing on single and double stick techniques and drills. One of the things I have enjoyed the most about working with this group is that they are experienced and trained martial artists
A Thousand Starting Points Read More »
Being social makes me nervous. I never quite know what’s going on because I can’t really ‘see’facial expressions or subtle body language. It’s a weird feeling, being there and not having all theclues I need to interpret social cues accurately. There is always uncertainty for me in every interaction I make with people. I make
To Be Here and Now Read More »
The Path is there. Will you follow it? This thought came up for discussion during a training session. This person was all over the place mentally. You can tell he was distracted. It has been a while since he was in the Dojo. The thought came up as he was trying to determine which way