Some people like to travel, some to explore ... some as tourists on holidays. Travelling to ends of the earth is possible now. Space travel is within our reach too.
I like travelling too. I like to travel and explore to the ends of my emotions, my fantasies, my imaginations, my limitations, my threshold of pain, exhaustion, joy, fear and various sensations, mental stages and moods. The universe within me and the physical universe about me connects and affects each other like yin and yang. When i can conquer myself, my emotions and my thoughts i can read my opponents' intentions and react before they even attack.
The vehicle i choose for the journey is Aikido. Fascinating, isn't it? I don't think people are qualified to comment about Aikido unless they experience enough of it to begin to appreciate how incredible this Martial Art is.
The journey so far has helped me understand why people quit Aikido. Here are some personal observations ....
... they fail to see its effectiveness in streetwise self defence Martial Arts as in a brawl situation ...
They did not stick around long enough to understand or begin to understand the principles of the Art of Peace - Aikido and to connect with the situation/partners/perpetrators. They forget to use their imagination/creativity to apply the Aikido principles/techniques accordingly. Look long and hard enough via Aikido and you can see Aikido in all styles of martial arts be it Brazillian Jiu jit su to Arnis Stick Fighting ...
... they quit because it too hard on them physically. The physically training itself is no kids' play. The frequency of classes needed to even feel the general drift is more like every 2nd day or every 3rd at least. Not forgetting the out of class or at home self practice and self exploration. A little bit of training every day by myself ... small steps, reinforces the lessons learnt and refines the existing knowledge and skill. Relying on the classes or what Sensei wants us to do is simply not enough. We need to take responsibility for our own training and work on our various weaknesses.
... people quit because of the risk of injuries. But we train to avoid injuries and work around the injuries, pain and fear. If we don't train, the risk of injuries, fear and pain is even greater.
... people quit because of the members or the behaviours of certain members piss them off. Hey, it's good training for the soul to tolerate and learn from improper behaviour as it is a challenge and test to turn it around so they can correct it themselves. We lead by example and where appropriate, we don't tell them off, we admonish and encourage them positively because we care about them ... because we function as a school together and as a dojo. We need ukes and shites of different build, stature and character, don't we?
... people quit because they get bored with doing the same things over and over again. They fail to see the new in the old. Dig deep enough in the old and we will find new stuff, new wonders, ... all the Masters of the their arts remain interested and enthused because they continually find new horizons in the basics (old) ... they don't get bored - they get excited as in receiving new toys like kids again. Show me a master of an art and i will show you a kid with a new toy any day.
... people lose self-motivation to continue on. Don't look for self-motivation, don't even look for motivation. Treat it as part of your life. Yes, albeit a big part of your life. (The bigger the better). Some things come unexpectedly. The number of times i feel absolutely crap at the start of the class or before training or on my way to a class outnumber the times i look forward to it. However i know that after the warm-ups, when i start to immerse myself in the training ... an elation start to take place ... more often than not i feel sensational after the class, wanting to do a little extra after the session even. The old saying ... " you 'll feel great afterwards..." holds true everytime. It's the attitude alright - you can bet on it.
... people quit because they can't find the time anymore. Sounds like an unwillingness to sacrifice the regular dojo time for other priorities. Check our priorities. If training is not high on the list then sorry ... you are not cut out for it. A pleasure to have had you on board and nice knowing you. Have a great life and come back whenever you are ready again.
