Well, first of all, let me apologize for not writing in a while, my usual excuse is that I’ve been so busy at work; which, while true, shouldn’t prevent me from sending a short note once a month or so. So here’s a note that I actually started on 16 Jan (yes, nearly two months ago) which is the anniversary of the day I was saved as a christian. It gives some idea as to how our karate ministry started in the first place and why I try to be there every week. “Why Are We Here?” Kind of a strange title eh? Okay, I’m not necessarily talking about that age-old metphysical question about our purpose here in life. I’m talking about what ordinary folks are doing at a dojo or, in our case, at a karate ministry, especially on a Saturday morning, when they could be sleeping in, eating breakfast, watching tv, reading the papers, shopping, etc. My guess is that everyone’s motivation would fall into one or more of the following categories of: self-defense, exercise, conditioning, stretching, the influence of movies, interest in asian tradition, fellowship, having the kids learn some discipline, and so on. If, however, you [...]

Well, it’s a new year and one of the times of the season where one reflects on the past and sets one’s eyes on the future. We had a terrific holiday party a couple of weeks ago, thanks in large part, to the huge efforts of Sensei Trish, who planned and executed the whole event. Good food, games, prizes and treats were had by all…after all, the karate ministry isn’t merely about punching and kicking; it’s also about fellowship and enjoying the good things in life that we often take for granted. Talk about new, it was really good seeing the newest addition to the Nakasue family, Krislyn – and in a few years, a future karateka? It was also a time to realize how many new members have joined the ministry since our last party, a year ago. Let’s pray the 2009 brings more of the same and that we get to share our ministry with others. Talking about the old (haha), yesterday, we were graced by the presence of my old sensei, Ed Fujiwara, who graciously served as guest instructor. A great practice was had by all (“More down! Down, down, down!…”) Amazingly, Sensei Wayne also came for [...]

Just a quick reminder that tomorrow is the first Sat training of the month, which means that everyone is invited to train for the two hours from 09:00-11:00 am. I’ll gear the training towards techniques/drills that everyone can do together as well as spend more time on kata. It also gives kohais from the first class a chance to train with their sempais from the second class. I have sometimes mentioned that the more time one can spend in practice, the better one gets (duh!). In the old days, we trained up to 5-7 times a week. Not only that, but the training was often 2-3 hours each. It doesn’t take rocket science to figure out why this was good for us. Those who have been with the ministry from the beginning (like Sempai Rodney) can remember that during our first couple of years, everyone trained for two hours (no wonder they learned a lot), until the group got too large and the rank gaps got too broad and we had to split into two classes. The first Sat of the month, the kohais have the opportunity to put in an extra hour to learn a little more karate-do (exams [...]