Time to Kill

This was my first time to train on a Thursday night. Usually my work schedule doesn't allow it; also, the only beginner's class offered is at 7:00pm, which is a bit late for me. Anyway, I arrived at the dojo around 6:00, so I had a lot of time to kill. There was a women's class from 6 to 7pm, so I couldn't enter the dojo early. Instead, I went up to the 4th-floor dojo to warm up and stretch because it's seldom used at night. There were a few students practicing some moves as I entered. Around 6:30, a steady stream of students had entered and were suddenly lined up in seiza. I thought, wow, we still have a half hour. Everyone must be really serious on Thursdays. Then all of a sudden the instructor came in and class was underway! I knew this wasn't Fujimaki Sensei, nor was it the correct starting time. I was puzzled. A few seconds into the class, the instructor walked over to me and asked if I were a member of the aikido academy (a special class offered at Hombu). So that's what happened -- I had wandered into the totally wrong class. I apologized and quickly left. I felt like such an idiot.

The class I had in mind is taught by Fujimaki Sensei. He also teaches the 6pm women's class, so he doesn't get much of a break between classes. It was my first time to be taught by him. Apparently I wasn't the only clueless Westerner tonight; as we entered the dojo, Sensei made a light-hearted comment to a student about the student's wandering into the previous women's class. I felt a little better after hearing that.

We started with standing (rippo) katate-dori kokyu-ho ura. This is something we normally don't practice on Sunday mornings, so I was glad to work on it a little. In gyaku-hanmi stance, uke does tenkan and then makes an outward arc with his arm, downing uke. Next was suwari-waza ikkyo. I noticed that I wasn't very fluid in my knee walking (shikko). Before my next exam, which is still in the distant future, I really need to practice this. I don't want to fail because of it.

One of my uke tonight (a Westerner) told me that it's hard to do ikkyo on me because of my long arms. He had to cut down to the side with my arm instead of straight back. I didn't realize how he felt until I saw my next uke who was about the same height as me. We were doing yonkyo, and I wasn't accustomed to executing the move on a person with such long arms! So now I can sympathize with all of my uke from now on.

It always seems to happen when we do yonkyo: When I am uke, my partner needs help from Sensei with the pin. I brace myself for the flood of pain to wash over me as Sensei applies the technique to the inside of my arm, right above the wrist. My wrist is still in pain, and it's been four hours since the end of the class. I sometimes wonder if yonkyo can cause permanent injury. Surely it can't since the instructors always apply it so effectively on us...