Love/hate relationships…yup! Seems to be the story of my life these days. Yin/yang is the order of this third dimensional existence! Love it – because the only guarantee is one day we will all leave it.

I have not written in a while…major testing for students at my school. I love the results, but hate the process. Our policy is to bring in the instructors from our other branches to form an unbiased board of judgment. The reason? Objectivity. The instructional staff at our school works hard to whip the students into top-notch form for their day of reckoning. I never dreamed over forty years ago that the mantel of martial excellence would fall on my shoulders from my Master, or that I would demand so much from those that I produced into black belts.

Karma has come full circle. Oh, the meticulous scrutiny! Such strict adherence to the martial principles! Checking every rise, drill, fall, and over-turn. Searching every interpretation of left-right, up-down, rotation of every movement. Observing every throw or take down for inside diameter and outside circumference; every joint lock making sure that both the agonist and antagonistic muscles are engaged in immobilizing the joint on the local, partial, or total level. Watching the root used in every foots floor contact anchored to the heavier slower muscles sequencing with the ligher faster ones upon completion, while the inside yin portion of the foot is properly used for the movement and the outside yang braces at the proper time.

I love it, this group of passionate martial artists that are preserving the tenets of martial excellence in this fast solution short cut age! Like Dr. Frankenstein, I created them!

I hate it! I humbly set down my seventh dan and subject my current students to this human microscope of examination as I helplessly watch. What in the name of God and classical martial arts have I done?

Last Saturday the children’s test was a success! This Saturday the adults will test. It’s been a hard week and it’s not finished yet. The black belt pre-test is coming up in about six weeks, to separate the wheat from the chaff. AAAHHH! This fourth generation Master stuff is not all that it’s cracked up to be!

I think that I will watch some YouTube. Dial up some Moriehei, Uyeshiba, or Jigaro Kano. Some Gichien Funakoshi might not be bad. I wonder what those guys thought while trying to maintain excellence during their days in charge of quality and perfections.

Martial Arts…I love it/I hate it! BUT, it’s the best damned thing that ever happened to me!

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