A Finger Pointing at the Moon
My ski companion decided to take a break and have a beer. I left her sitting outside in the snow on a lawn chair in the broad area at the...
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durangosbkaikido
Feb 18, 20234 min read
Taking Up Space
The attacker lunged for Lisa. She deftly shifted back a few inches out of reach. She gripped his hand. She made a graceful pivot....
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durangosbkaikido
Sep 27, 20223 min read
Acing the Test
DSBK Offers First Post-Covid Kyu Test Sensei called out the first technique to be demonstrated on the test. Mike Boeckman listened to the...
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durangosbkaikido
Oct 21, 20203 min read
Change and Breathing
We are living in a time of great change. Change comes with uncertainty. For many people, uncertainty creates anxiety. We can’t eliminate...
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durangosbkaikido
Jul 28, 20204 min read
Cutting Class
Ahhh. There’s nothing like a good sword-slinger movie set in a historic and/or fanciful Asian world. Any Kurosawa film belongs on the...
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durangosbkaikido
Mar 8, 20194 min read
Know Your Limitations
Face down. Prostrate on my belly. With my head turned to one side, one cheek smooshed and spread like a pancake on the griddle. That’s...
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durangosbkaikido
Nov 26, 20184 min read
The Wrestler’s Vessel: A father and son give thanks for family, respect, and Aikido
Jerry and Nate face off on the mats. Jerry offers his torso as a target. Nate surges forward, his fist a torpedo gunning for his father’s...
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durangosbkaikido
May 1, 20183 min read
Practice Watered Down
“Don’t change the kata,” Sensei Mark reminds the class. We stand in pairs down the mat, like characters in a Jane Austen novel about to...
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durangosbkaikido
Feb 20, 20183 min read
Joy and beginner’s mind
My shaky signature on the little sign-in card betrayed the fact that I was choking back some fear. This was Day One of my aikido...
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durangosbkaikido
Sep 28, 20173 min read
Shall We Dance?
Our dojo recently enjoyed a spectacular, technically spot-on nikyu test—nikyu meaning 2nd rank below black belt shodan. No matter what...
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philipriffe
Aug 15, 20173 min read
Kinesthetic Skill
I never expected to fall in love again. For several months, my wife Adele had been taking tai chi at the community college. After class,...
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durangosbkaikido
Jul 31, 20172 min read
A Choice in the Matter
I could have gone blind the light was so bright. It blazed so abruptly. I didn’t have time to take cover and shield my eyes. This...
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durangosbkaikido
Jul 25, 20172 min read
Moving Around My Own Center
Mark Sensei commonly reminds us to move around our own center, regardless of what uke may be doing or not doing. After spending my entire...
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