Last night I had three senior students from a Japanese Goju Ryu club attend our karate class. They found us through Facebook, were open and honest about their current training situation, were genuine people, hence were welcomed with open arms. All three have been training for over 25 years, are instructors at their respective club, have a countless number of students, and are quite recognised in the Australian karate world. So the question is, why did they come to us? We don’t claim to be any expert nor people of importance, we don’t have a large following of students, we are just nobodies teaching and training in our home dojos.
So overwhelmed by what we were offering, they started to question themselves of what they had actually been learning and teaching after all these years. I was more than happy they were open to new ideas and concepts, yet at the same time felt a sense of sadness. Sad that such genuine people were and still are going around in this blind circle of passing down knowledge that they themselves doubt and question (which had previously been passed on to them). Sad that despite endless political karate issues, in addition to being so unhappy and seeking more knowledge and answers, still cannot break ties with their organisation.
If you’re not content in your present situation be it karate, occupation, relationship etc, what is stopping you from delving into this mysterious thing also known as ‘happiness’ - something we all deserve. We will never force anyone to change clubs or styles, but always find it fascinating people remain in situations where they are not satisfied while incessantly complaining.
As our karate sensei in Okinawa puts it, “Karate, Simple”. Can I just add, life too is simple!
