Day 4718: "How did you get into that?" & The Polish Cow.

   

"Fast Attacks": ink brushstrokes

   

  

Want music?

    Click: Richie Valens, LaBamba

2GN2S

A dear lady, who I greatly respect, asked ...

 "How did you get into that?" That, meaning martial arts, and karate specifically. A question that has been asked a lot. And me, always looking for the next blog, thought this may be in the TMI category, but okay?

Earliest memory ... at age 8 ... fascinated, 

seeing men in white suits doing something (?)

inside a store-front on Sunset Boulevard, 

as my Dad drove us to the Ontra Cafeteria. 

  I didn't know what they were doing, 

or why, but I wanted to know more even then. 

Each trip, I would perk up blocks ahead, ready to peek in.This keen interest remained on the back burner for the next 22 years, with no option to discover more.

Later, living & teaching in Riverside, I took classes at UCR. A strong karate program was growing ... and I was hooked. I trained five nights a week, plus four hours on Saturday. This was after teaching junior high school all day. There weren't many women in Karate then, no concessions were made. I wasn't skilled, but I loved it and I still do.

That's the how.

 The why is more important.

For fifty two years I have studied traditional Japanese karate.Originally, Shoto-Kan at UCR with Sensei Ray Dalke, then Shito-Ryu Itosu-Kai, and Genbu-Kai with Demura Sensei.

Yes, karate is physically demanding, pushing limits, requiring self-discipline, bravery and endurance. 

That sounds daunting, but everyone has their own limitations, even the super-skilled. We all work to do our best. But we work to conquer ourselves, not others. 

Dojo kun, Demura Sensei's caligraphy.

But, even more important is the respect, manners, honor, gentility, loyalty, and especially humility.

These are important to me.

 

  

 

A 2+ minute video, Mudskipper Dance, here

 

  

 

Just because ...

Club-winged Manakin

 

Sunday's Smiles ...