Thursday, November 18, 2010 - Session Thirteen

Oh man, oh man! Practicing with bogu on was incredible! I mean, yes, my technique dropped way down as soon as it was on. Once again, any progress I had made on not lunging forward was lost. And once again, I was moving too much from my shoulders and not enough from the hips. BUT! Two new students came in to try out the class. They were a mother and son. So I got to spend some two hours being motodachi to them both, as well as motodachi to Maestas Sensei. And it was so much fun! I felt a little giggle deep down inside each time that Sensei struck me on the men, and the very first strike I received was a tsuki which sent me stumbling back three or four steps, and it felt so brilliant! There was a moment when I did actually giggle after three or four strikes to the head, and Sensei joked about that. So much fun. I know it all maybe sounds a bit masochistic. But being struck around like that was really a whole mess of fun and - aside from my right ear getting rubbed a little raw inside the men, and one moment when the young boy struck me on the bicep rather than the kote, and the fact that my nose would begin to itch as soon as my men was on and I could not scratch it - it felt great.

It was more challenging but it made me like the art that much more as well.

It was a little awkward at first in the evening, when the mother and son approached me about the class. Maestas Sensei had not yet arrived and so I spent some time telling them about the equipment that is used. Shinai, bokuto, keikogi and hakama, and the bogu; and it felt a bit awkward. Dilo, dilo, dilo. At one point the mother asked me whether or not I was a Canadian and I boggled. Turns out she figured I might have been because the interior of the do-dai (hard portion of the chest protector) says "University of Victoria" on the inside. I laughed at that quite a bit. Not sure why I was so amused. But hot damn. Tonight was fun and I cannot wait until the next time. Too bad there is practice this coming week. I guess I will just have to get in a bit more practice time at home. I feel like I should write more, like a post about my first night in bogu should be somehow more momentous, but all I can really think to write is that it was great and I had fun. I guess that is good enough though.

Hurrah!