Back (kick) To The Future

CHRONICLES OF THE DOKA#35 in a continuing series(84 days in the teaching life of an American sensei in 1999) I have a devoted teaching staff. Fifteen years ago, in the 1980’s, I could singlehandedly teach a class with as many as fifty-five children. That was the limit...

Closure

CHRONICLES OF THE DOKA#31 in a continuing series— 84 days in the teaching life of an American sensei in 1999) As Dharman exited his private class, he passed my next client, the outgoing, forty-five year old chemist named Steve. The two had met a few times before....

SURFACE AND DEPTH

CHRONICLES OF THE DOKA#30 in a continuing series— 84 days in the teaching life of an American sensei in 1999) I continue my dialog with my young apprentice, Dharman.“Though rarely thought of in this light, the martial arts engage everyone, all the time, in the...

BULLYDOM

CHRONICLES OF THE DOKA#28 in a continuing series— 84 days in the teaching life of an American sensei in 1999) My next class for the day is a semi-private with two men, Dharman and Scott, both brown belts, and very different from one another. Dharman, a good ten years...

ENGAGE

CHRONICLES OF THE DOKA#27 in a continuing series 84 days in the teaching life of an American sensei in 1999 It’s important to engage students with some hearty conversation about martial arts while being careful to balance one’s talk with action. A friend of mine once...