KIAI

"Kiai is a good word to describe the demeanor of the karateka as they move from their mutual bow into free-sparring or a prearranged exchange of techniques."

—Dave Lowry, Traditions: Essays on the Japanese Martial Arts and Ways

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The past three days have been "karate intense."

On Thursday, The Child and I attended our regular class and engaged in a lot of kumite (sparring) techniques and practice. I seriously thought my chest was going to bruise (it didn't) because of how many blows I took during one particular drill.

On Friday, The Child and I helped serve as helpers at a Women's Self-Defense Seminar. We acted as attackers and let women learn how to defend themselves against us, putting our bodies "on the line" for the purpose of said learning.

On Saturday, The Child and I attended a Weapons and Kumite Seminar at our dojo. We learned the "Hamahiga No Tonfa" kata for the first hour and then worked through technique drills for sparring (kumite) for the second. I find these events equally fun and frustrating as I learn new things and simultaneously realize what I don't know and/or cannot currently do. Which is why it's a journey, a path, a process.

(When we returned home, The Child immediately started reviewing Hamahiga No Tonfa in the backyard. And then proceeded to walk me through it again, since it takes me some time to learn the patterns, pacing, moves, and mechanics of kata, whether with weapons or with "empty hands.")

Ultimately, though, it was a great three days of martial arts peppered with other good things.