Leaving the Nest

I knew today's practice was going to be crowded because the staff at the front desk had put newspapers on the floor in front of the big wall that holds everyone's shoes. There were already pairs of shoes on the newspapers. Sure enough, lots of new faces were present. That's okay because I was able to meet some new people. There was a married couple visiting from India who had only been practicing aikido for one month. It was their second practice at Hombu, and they were going to be in Japan for one month.

There were people on either side of my uke and me who kept bumping us during practice. In Japan, people sometimes bump into others without any acknowledgment; I suppose in a country with such a dense population and not much livable space, bumping has become part of life. I have even caught myself doing it withouut offering an apology. Anyway, After practicing the second move and bowing to my partner, I rushed across the dojo to find my next partner. It seemed like the students in that part of the room were a bit more considerate of others around them.

I learned a few new "tricks" today that helped me with my technique. On shomen-uchi ikkyo, when I cut down on uke's arm, bringing my left foot forward after leading with my right foot, I brought that left foot against uke's grounded foot. It nearly tripped uke and prevented him from recovering from being off-balance. Whenever I am partners with a black belt, this technique is always used on me, and I was finally able to figure out how to do it.

Another tequnique that I learned was during shomen-uchi nikkyo. Again, my partner was a (recently promoted) black belt, and when he had my arm in a wrist lock, he applied pressure with his thumb on the outside of my hand where the index finger and thumb come together, right above the bone. It really hurt, and no one else has ever used that pressure point on me during nikkyo, so I'm not sure if it's something taught by Aikikai (because I can't understand every point that sensei explains) or if it's just something that this individual does. At any rate, I will use it from now on.

After class, I was standing in the 4th-floor hallway near the stairs and Irie-sensei had to pass me to get to the stairs. He stopped and said to me in a low voice, "Karaana-san, you should start attending the regular (advanced) class in the main dojo since this beginner's class is so crowded." I said, "But I'm not very good," and sensei immediately responded with, "No one is very good the first time." I took this as a sign! I was a little scared, so I quickly told an English-speaking student what had happened. He told me that sensei told him the previous week to start attending the regular class as well, but this student decided not to. Well, I think I'll take the challenge! We all have to leave the nest at some point, right?