RED – Retired Extremely Dangerous
I was just watching the movie RED, and the title
struck me as accurate. Of course Extremely Dangerous is more in my mind these
days than an accurate reflection.
These days no student graces my doors and I spend a
lot of time remembering many things.
In our martial careers we follow many threads:
1. That of a student, of our primary art and of many
other secondary studies.
a. Isshinryu
b. Yang Tai Chi Chaun
c. Chinese form studies
d. Sutrisno Shotokan, Aikido, Tjimande
e. friends Goju, Shorin Ryu and many other systems
2.As an instructor of youth.
3.As an instructor of adults some of who trained in
excess of 30 years
4. As a researcher in the applications of Isshinryu.
5. As a researcher into older Okinawan karate
traditions
That is but one way to look at where my time over my
decades was spent.
For one thing at one time or another I probably
learned more than 300 forms as well as practicing them. I found out the hard
way it was impossible to practice all of them in the long run. As useful as
that knowledge was to me personally, I also discovered it was impossible to
share all of it.
My main focus was on what the potential uses were
for my Isshinryu. I also discovered ever 34 years was not enough time to teach
all of them. More important to focus on the principles behind them and let
students understand how to use them to understand any technique they possessed.
As a youth instructor what became most important was
to be sure to let them realize they could learn through their own efforts, That
is what the community needs, youth that learn how to learn, and not just
karate. In time each and every one of them will move on, either after 2 years
or after 8 years. It is a natural process of growing up. If you instruction
helps them to make rational choices for their own needs, you have succeeded.
As an adult instructor, the karate was the same, But
the focus was different, they had already made adult choices to choose to
train. Developing their skills logically and allowing them to be able to enter
the greater study of karate was the most important thing.
Applications were shown for all students from day
one. However, the logical study of application potential and then the process
for application realization was a dan study, once foundational skills were
strong enough to use.
Adults reaching dan stayed an average of 17+ years,
but in time they too made their adult choices where they had to spend their
time. If you instruction allowed them to make those choices clearly you
successfully shared what was most important.
The real thing you learnt working with long term
students, was their needs were ever so much more important than your own. At
times they could coincide, but only at times.
Time in class was focused on the physical side of
the training. Even those training 34 years never had enough time to look at
everything I was looking at. And not just in the number of forms.
Entire studies of Okinawan history could never be
expressed.
But those studies were very important to me.
As an example, I did a great amount of study on the
Okinawan Bubiahi over the years. But I never taught the Okinawan Bubishi as
part of any class. Certainly portions of that work are in Isshinryu history,
and all are exposed to that, but the majority of it was not discussed. Nor ever
did I tell my students to hurry out and buy a copy because it will make their
training easier.
Along the way I began my blog.
A way to allow them to remember so many things.
1. Those having direct relevance on their training,
allowing them to remember those lessons.
2. A way to share so many other things I experienced
or looked at, a way to allow future students or themselves to see what I say.
And decide whether to look into them for themselves.
The core was the physical side of things I
experienced, and those things I worked out for myself.
Here is a short list of some of them.
A few examples of the more esoteric of
my studies.
They are things I freely share with anyone,
understanding with the floor time, the understanding will be less than for my
students.
Of course there are things I share with them
personally.
You might
guess I get deeper into such things with them.
And of course there are those things I do not share.
Either their time has not yet come,
Or they are for my understanding alone.
RED perhaps.
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