After Sunday practice, Ishibashi Sensei and I continued working on Aikido technique. When the attacker grabs my wrist, that’s not their singular intention. The attacker grabs my wrist to punch with their other hand. Sensei grabbed my left wrist with his right hand, ready to punch with his left hand.
As the nage receiving the attack, I keep my left hand in my center. I stand in profile, raise my right hand ready to strike. I move on the kensen (the line of attack). I draw the attacker, the uke, to my center. I can either strike the uke or redirect the attack with my right hand. Both the uke and I attack each other’s center.
I redirect the attack, applying kotegaeshi (wrist lock) to myself. The uke applies kotegaeshi to themselves to take the fall or stands down. The nage and uke are mirror images of each other. They are reflections.
In Aikido, I train with my partner. We’re reflections of each other. I have nothing to do with what goes on inside my partner. I choose what goes on inside me. I work on myself, not on others. Still, working on myself generates the space for others to work on themselves as well. They become greater. I become greater. We bring everyone up together. That’s what the training is for.
I told Sensei that when someone annoys me, that’s about me, not them. I see someone as arrogant, that’s my own reflection. What pisses me off about that person is what I have to work on. Sensei smiled, “Yes, you have something to work on.” Yes, I always do.
I used to think, “Oh, shit! I’ve got something else to work on!” Now, I think, “Okay cool! I’ve got to work on that.” The Japanese aesthetic wabi-sabi distinguishes beauty in imperfection. I discover beauty, what’s possible in my own imperfections. My imperfections are simply what I have to work on or not. Wabi-sabi is about acceptance of self. I continually reveal my imperfections, my failures, and my weaknesses on my path. For me, I constantly let go of, I’m not good enough. Just saying.
O-Sensei Morihei Ueshiba said, “True victory is victory over oneself.” I’m always my GOAT (Greatest of All-Time) opponent. I overcome myself. I work on myself, not on others. Nothing’s personal. Just train.
The late NBA legend Kobe Bryant said, “Failure excites me.” My failures reveal what I have to work on. The late Mizukami Sensei said, “Just train. It’s not like you have to get somewhere.” Sensei was the humblest man I knew on Planet Earth. When Sensei said, “Just train”, that meant I put my head down, put in the work, and didn’t complain. There’s always something to learn, something to improve, something to refine. That’s just life.
In the bigger picture, failure doesn’t mean I suck. Failure presents what I have to work on. I work on myself, not on others. Nothing is personal. I can smile and say, “Very cool. I’ll work on that.” Just train. Amen.
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