Had class yesterday, a good, get back into the groove kind of class. Prior to it happened something that I just made my day. As I settled to the floor near one corner of the room to stretch a little, as I usually like to do prior to the start of my class in which we will stretch anyway, I saw a purple belt practicing with a white belt maybe 5-8 feet away, looking to me with an inquisitive eye. Turned out the instructor was helping out at the other end of the room and they needed some help of their own on an intermediate self defense technique. The purple belt, a young man (maybe 20yo) actually asked me very politely if I could help them sort out the sequence of moves in a couple of techniques. That might be silly, but I felt very good being asked to help and did help them to the best of my knowledge. They certainly seemed to appreciate it.
This is one thing that's quite particular to martial arts, you wear your rank. I don't boast about it and would neverput down a "lower" ranked belt on something he would say to me just because I'm a "higher" ranked belt. I just hit me that the more I see other adults coming up through the ranks, the more I sometimes see them looking at me with somewhat different eyes. Maybe it's all in my head, but I remember seeing the brown belts when I first got to practice with some of them when I was a purple belt and I was impressed by how they moved and would look up to them for any tip or hint they could give me to improve my technique. Now if I can give back that little bit to someone else, to the extent of what I certain of, meaning that I don't give false advice leadning others down a wrong path, I'll try to do it. I also realize that this means I am far from done from learning. I have to listen even more closely to what my instuctor tells me, practice harder, if I want to be a better exemple, a better "teacher"...
I think that from now on, whenever I'll have a chance to on these Mondays, I'll try to get to the dojo a bit more ahead of time. Don't want to impose myself, but if I can help anybody improve, that will only make me a better martial artist... Even better, if there's no need for my help, there is some available space in the room next door, and in that case, I'll practice on my own. That should definitely make me a better martial artist.
FM
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13 comments:
I don't boast about it and would neverput down a "lower" ranked belt on something he would say to me just because I'm a "higher" ranked belt.
Yes and this is the most important part of the karate's philosophy! Before in Japan, they had only three belts: white, brown and black. Your belt doesn't matter, what you learn and get you to the next level matter.
Teaching is really different than practicing, you must explain by your words how to do the technic and you must know it perfectly. When you're not sure, you can always ask to somebody else (your teacher is not the only one who know karate, all your teammates does). I will always remember one day, I was revewing a kata of a orange belt and I though he did something wrong, but he's sure he's right. I asked to another near teacher if he's right and he was! I am black belt and I learned from a orange belt. This mean even if you're high ranked, somebody lower can know something you didn't, but this kind of situation is very very very rare when I'm teaching at this level (actually the only one).
Teaching doesn't only bring you to question you, but you will better know your stuff and will be better.
I encourage you to continue to help others, that will give you something you can get alone.
Aha sorry, I am a little bit dislecsic and each time I read this sentence I though it was the opposite. I wanted to say:
I encourage you to continue to help others, that will give you something you can't get alone.
What a wonderful realization that you have started this year with!
I remember one of my experienced Sensei friends telling me "Always teach with knowledge, never derision." I have cherished, and carried those words in my mind ever since...
Helping each other builds a dojo up, and creates bonds of friendship(?)... perhaps interdependence might be a better word to describe the bond.
I have always arrived at the dojo a good 15 minutes early so that I could be available should anyone want to approach me for help. I make sure that I do not impose myself on anyone and give unsolicited advice. I've had some personal negative experiences of a higher belt strutting up to me and correcting me on various things that I was not working upon at the time. I was working on one part of me not on everything else. I remember feeling annoyed, and frustrated instead of grateful. I learned from that moment.
It's true, benoit, that one can learn from anyone, and having open eyes helps bring forth potential understanding.
DId you get that last comment?
bug with blogger.
anyways, really good start to 2007 and keep it up.
It's a very positive experience to get a higher-graded help you out and feeling that he wants to.
Like Mireille pointed out, the opposite sucks.
:)
Be well,
thanks for your comments everyone!
To complement what's being said here, you are so right that teaching brings a whole new way of seeing things. I have been in a teaching positions in the past, all the way to be a University teaching position (chargé de cours for the French readers around here) as well as giving class at the CEGEP level (in Quebec, it's a mandatory two/three year that kids have to go through between high school and college), and I always found that it helped me better understand whatever I was teaching at the moment. To show something to someone, you have to understand it first, right?
Specifically responding to Mireille'S "concerns", I really wouldn't impose myself on anyone, but I had started seeing people looking at me with the same kind of eyes that that purple belt had on Monday. You know the question mark stamped on someone's forehead. I used to not go forward too much, thinking I didn't know enough to help anyone, really ANYONE. I've come to realize that I do know some things, at least sometimes enough to unlock somebody from a frozen moment in the middle of a technique or a kata. But by going forward, I will simply, quietly ask if the person needs help. If the answer is "it's okay, I'm trying to get it on my own" I'll let them be, but sometimes people are afraid to ask and being asked if they need help will sometimes be answered with a "yeah, you know in this kata (or that technique), I'm stuck here, what's next". I like restarting someone's engine and letting them figure out the rest, which they very often do.
Regarding getting to the dojo 15 minutes early, well, I never really saw the point, again thinking "what good can it serve to come around and do not much more than standing around?". Now I know that that 15 minutes will be a worth 15 minutes. :)
Mat, nope, never got your first comment. I agree with you about having a higher graded showing the feeling he wants to help. I like helping, that won't be difficult. Trying to to overwhelm others with too much knowledge might be though. :)
Take care, Steve.
Back in August, I was invited by my Sensei to be part of our school's "leadership team"... that is, to start teaching as a volunteer... I was very honoured to be asked and I admit that having to teach others our skills is a very good way to become a better martial artist... in order to teach, you must first master the techniques, so you must put extra effort into it... (for example, learning the techniques on both sides)... Anyhow, I find that I am getting much more out of teaching than the time I am voplunteering!
Oh and please let me share with you my pride... My daughter is attending her first ever karate class tonight... she is 3 and a half and looking just gorgeous in her tiny kimono! I am hoping she will love it as much as my son and I do... Will keep you posted! ;o)Myrika ;o)
please do keep me/us posted! I hope it went well. Three and a half is pretty young. How was she going into it, excited, looking forward to it?
Matthew, our youngest, will turn 3 next Monday. I'm looking forward to possibly signing him up next January, so just about when he'll turn 4. He alternates between saying that "yes, yes, yes, I wanna do karate" and "oh no, don'T wanna do it". I'm sure he'll give it a shot, seeing how daddy and his big brother are so much into it. :)
Take care, Steve.
I just got something from watching kenpo videos.
Your whole kata is a self-defense act.
Am I wrong stating that?
I used to look at your kata's and go : "why are they moving that fast?? And why all those hand movements?"
But I think I just got it. You've got a whole lot of
"break hold, grab back, snap neck, hit groin, hit-block, enter defense" in there.
I was wondering what the purpose/emphasis was in your karate type.
It's an application karate. Right?
"Specifically responding to Mireille'S "concerns", I really wouldn't impose myself on anyone,"
I hope that you didn't take my ramblings as any indication that I thought that you would impose yourself on others, Steve. I wasn't directing my words in any personal way... I was just thinking about my past experiences.. that's all.
Yes.. there is such a nice feeling to know that I have amassed enough knowledge that I can help someone. I remember this one poor woman that was very upset in the ladie's changeroom because she was having difficulty with her blocks, and she was going to test for her belt in a couple of days. I approached her and offered to help. She was quite skeptical that I'd be able to help her, but I guess that I exuded such confidence that it was a possiblity she allowed me to try to help her improve. It was a simple thing of finding the right rhythm, and off she went rejoicing in her new found skill that was always within her. I walked so much taller that day.
:-)
Mat, you've defined it just about the right way, yeah, application/self defense kata is how they are teaching them to us.
Mireille, I didn't really take it that you thought I would do that, but wanted to say it anyway. :)
Yes, realizing that maybe I know enought to help out somebody else is a powerful feeling, and one you can build upon. It kind of breeds itself. The more you help, the more you want to help. That's when I'll have to make sure I'm not pushing too much on the person I'm trying to help...
Take care, Steve.
We have a rule in our dojo that you cannot "teach" something to another student without being invited to do so by our Sensei. It's kind of a quality control mechanism. Is it the case in your dojo?
I think your approaching the whole thing nicely. Keep it up!
Mat :
An application karate? In opposition to what?
Marc
mrx:
:) Good point. I expressed myself badly.
Look at the Chito-Ryu kata. Can you actually see all those moves?
The NiSeiShi kata I now practice has about... 7 techniques. And about 13 applications. They're "hidden" You don't see them right away.
If you look at a kenpo kata, you immediately see the application - pull hair, hit groin, hit face, etc etc etc.
Those same things are in all kata - granted - but are much more apparent in kenpo. There are kata's that when done, you keep wondering : ok, what does that serve? This question is not applicable. There are even karate style that don't - read that --> don't - explain applications.
Better explanation?
cheers.
A nice article :
http://karatejutsu.blogspot.com/2007/01/holding-bo-pinkies.html
cheers
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