It's been a year

I think it was a year ago tonight that we closed our dojo to indoor group classes. I remember getting a phone call from Laurin Herr that Nadeau sensei was closing Mt View and San Francisco. I remember discussing this with Linda Holiday sensei. And  after a couple of not so good attempts we started online zoom classes and an outdoor class in the park just around the corner from Martha St. So it has been a year of blending with the pandemic. Trying to keep in touch with folks by phone and online. Nadeau sensei and I have kept our weekly Osensei oriented meetings going, only by phone.

The February CAA training/meeting we usually host was done totally online. I was privileged to be asked to teach Division 3's class. Last Augusts CAA event was online. Last year's Osensei Revisited Retreat was cancelled due to the pandemic. This year the event is online running this past Saturday and continuing 3 more Saturdays March 13, 20, and 27th. Harry Concepcion and I both co-taught on Saturday March 6th.

I hope this finds you, your family, friends safe and well. Just as today is I think the yearly anniversary of our closing our dojo indoor program, tomorrow Elle and I are scheduled to get our 2nd vaccine. Hopefully side effects will be minimal. And in 2 more weeks, with masks and appropriate social distancing, rhings can begin to normalize. According to my daughter, after my 2nd vaccine I can watch and spend time with Nora, my granddaughter. So things have been far from normal and as more people get vaccinated, still going forward with masks and following appropriate guidelines, we can slowly and appropriately start to do the things we love, and see the people that usually make up our immediate world.

1. In September we lost Dame Diana Rigg. Her Mrs Peel character was instrumental in my interest in martial arts We also lost Sir Sean Connery. Imagine both Mrs Peel and James Bond in the same year. Quite a year for transitions And I get the feeling more change is in store But I am glad that my daughter, granddaughter, my partner Elle, and eveyone I interact with on the Zoom classes and the outdoor classes seem safe. I try to offer daily prayers for the dojo and dojo members.

We have started to emphasize the 30 movement staff spear movements. We have had 4 people certify for level 1 certification. Harry Concepcion. David Eves. Steve Tsao. And Cliff Winnig. We are doing our outdoor classes for this month on Sundays. I will try to remember to bring certificates and present them this weekend. We have been stressing the 30 movements online and also at the outdoors trainings. Here is a video of the 30 movements with some detail on the hand changes. and some work with the basic bokken cut.

https://youtu.be/vn61i5oO75U