Before Zen crossed the shores into Japan, the students of the Tendai school would study meditation, as part of their daily practice. Four of them, close friends all, promised one another to observe seven days of silence.
On the first day, no words were spoken, and the students took pleasure in their auspicious beginning. When night came however, the oil lamps grew dim, and the room slowly darkened.
One student, named Hoshin, called out to a servant: "Servant! Attend to the lamps, so that I might better observe our accomplishment!"
The second student was surprised to hear Hoshin speak. "We are supposed to keep quiet," he chided.
"But you also spoke!" declared the third. "You are an idiot!"
"I am the only one who has not talked," concluded the fourth, as he settled into seiza.
A reminder that Grady Lane Sensei of Brevard Aikikai will be visiting the dojo this Saturday. He has graciously agreed to teach both adult classes. Obviously, we encourage all our students to attend; it will be an excellent opportunity to receive instruction from a practitioner with thirty-five years Aikido experience.
We will also conduct adult testing after the second class. Good luck!
First, our congratulations to Gavin and Vanessa for passing their yellow belt – black stripe tests. Sensei and I are very pleased with your progress. Great job!
Second, we’re pleased as punch at the turnout for our movie night last Saturday — it was, by my count, our largest group to date. All our kids had a wonderful time. Our next event will be our annual Halloween party. Look for more details, including pictures of last year’s shindig, in our September newsletter.
A quick note and a warm thank you to everyone who participated in my little project. It’s important that we remember our own history. Our timeline, I think, does just that.
You can rely on the timeline as authoritative. While preparing it, I interviewed a good many people, again to whom I want to express my deepest gratitude. Not just our students and instructors, but other instructors as well, including Autrelle Holland and Grady Lane Sensei, whose memory I found invaluable. And of course Herve, who predates everyone from our school and got the ball rolling for me.
A bit more about the process: To verify my information, I reviewed primary source documents, including our USAF rank certificates and yukyusha cards. I also examined our Aikikai yudansha passports, and cross checked everything with dojo records. Only where necessary did I look at secondary source information.
Please note that the timeline, while accurate, is not necessarily complete. If I was not convinced about a date, I simply left it out. For example, we know that Lane Sensei taught at least one seminar locally in either 1994 or early 1995. Neither Lane Sensei nor myself can verify the exact date — at least not yet. As soon as we do so, rest assured that I will amend the post.
In sum, if there is a date, seminar, or event that involves the dojo, our timeline should be your go-to resource.
Again, thank you.
My recent examination of local history wouldn’t be complete unless I mentioned that Yamada Sensei also spent time in Jacksonville. Yes, it’s true — and not only Sensei, but another leading Shihan as well.
When did this happen, you ask? Well, I’ll tell you. It occurred in the mid-1980′s, and involved paintball, a fifty thousand dollar prize…and murder most foul.
The movie is Masterblaster, and it’s a hoot. The plot: a paintball contest has drawn together a diverse group of individuals, with the promise of a lucrative cash prize for the winner. It’s the 1980′s, so we have a Vietnam veteran, a few drunken good ol’ boys, and, of course, the conflicted police officer. Most importantly, we have Sensei, who in his movie debut does a star turn as the mysterious martial arts master. I won’t spoil the ending, except to say that if one of those stunt doubles looks familiar, I suggest you review your videos from Winter Camp.
Dee and I actually bought a copy a few years back. I’m sure we have it stashed away somewhere if you’re interested.
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