My Year as a Blogger

When I started this blog I was nervous about writing online. I've wrote for fun and I keep a journal, but I've never put anything online. I also didn't feel like I would have anything to say. But now since I've gotten comfortable with blogging I want to start a personal blog. I'm surprised that I only got stuck like two times the entire year. I had a lot to say about tournaments, trainings, and the soul of Karate. I also decided to take Journalism next year. I've always liked writing, ever since I was in elementary school. In 1st grade I won a competition, asking the entire school from kindergartners to the fifth graders to write a short story about sea creatures, African animals, or birds. I chose sea creatures and won a sea animal display (that I still have). In 3rd grade I wrote a 500 page story about an American Indian girl. The teacher would take about 15 minutes out of each class for me to read my story to the class. And in 5th grade I won a book contest and got to take home a giant, honestly twice my size, stuffed dog. By the way I still have that too. So I've had a lot of fun reading and writing my whole life. I love to read, I read all the time; before I sleep, tanning in the sun, on the bus to a game, airplanes, staging, I love books. I think people who read are more intelligent than people who say reading is boring. I'm not saying I'm super smart or anything but generally. The face people give me after I respond "no" after they ask, "oh are you reading that for school?" is all too familiar. For each person there's at least one book that can change your life. So since being in Honors English I've read a lot of different books that I wouldn't normally pick up. But I surprised myself by connecting to these books. Overall my experience in Honors English and writing this blog has been a good one. 

Photo curtesy of www.123rf.com

Training Karate in Japan

Training in a traditional Japanese Dojo was a crazy experience. For one they didn't speak any english so trying to understand what they were saying was fun. Also, they are much more strict and formal. The first class we attended was full of 7-10 year olds. We bowed in, then warmed up. After we were warm we were told to get in groups of three, so I went with Daniel and Ari. They handed us three different sized pipes, a large, medium, and small. Then we put the pipes down and attempted to balance on them. After about 30 seconds we would switch. At first it seemed easy but after about three rotations our feet were aching. After we worked on balance, we started doing kata. It was amazing how accurate and sharp the young kids were. Unlike american kids that do karate that are sloppy and uncoordinated and can barley remember the moves (no offense american kids). I can just imagine how good they will be once they're adults. The next class we went to was for older kids ages 11-14. In that class I grouped with two girls they were both 12. As we did the drills they giggled at me because I couldn't understand what the teacher was saying. Some of the other kids spoke a little english but were too shy to talk to us. The third class we went to was for teenagers and adults. At the beginning everyone ran over and grabbed a helmet. In our dojo we don't wear helmets and my parents never made me wear one so wearing it for the first time was awful. It was hot and sweaty and itchy. I felt like I could barely breathe. Also the helmet threw my depth perception off majorly. I would try and kick and miss by two feet. So it took me awhile to adjust. After three classes in a row we were tired and starving. I'm grateful for the experience and that the Japanese people put up with us dumb americans. 

Why We Bow

We bow out of respect and to give thanks, you bow to your sensei to thank them for teaching you, you bow to your teammates to thank them for training with you, and you bow to your opponent to thank them for competing against you and making you a better fighter. Bowing is an ancient tradition that comes from Japan. Bows can range from shallow nods to kneeling bows where one's head touches the floor. 

A traditional Takushu Rei bow. Picture curtesy of Blogger

Bowing can also show that you respect the person you are bowing to. Obviously you would respect your sensei, but also your training parters. Before we do any drill in the dojo we must first bow to our partners, this means that you will not harm them and will practice within a safe and secure environment. This is why we bow.