The other week I decided that the Dojo needed a clean up. (I normally give it a thorough clean once a year). It started with moving some signs, taking down some old photos and rearranging various equipment. Noticing that there was a bit of dirt on nearly everything, I got to cleaning. Then I noticed 'gecko' droppings on ledges, got that cleaned. I found marks on walls, holes, cracks and tape residue from pictures, I got that cleaned off too. If you had asked me beforehand, I thought my dojo was fairly clean to start with. By the time I got started and finished, it had been nearly a whole day. Admittedly I also touched up a few holes and cracks, then painted over. This did add to the time. From what I thought would be a couple of hours, turned into an entire day in the dojo.
This got me thinking…. How clean is my Karate? To me, my Karate seems and feels right.
To my peers, it looks good enough. But when I get in front of my Sensei, he finds so much that needs to be worked on. It is easy to become so used to the dirt on my Karate, that I just do not see it anymore. Sensei's ideal of 'clean' is at such a higher standard, every speck of dust or dirt is scrutinized and expected to be taken care of.
Hmmm.. Not so clean after all. Time to review what I thought I knew. The only way I can get there is to keep working on my Karate, to look at it from different angles, get up close and really polish every item, every technique, every principle that I can. I have spent many years working on my Karate, down in the Dojo. But just like cleaning, it takes a lot longer than you might think, there is always something that has become just "a little bit dusty" . The only solution is you just have to put in the time and constantly upkeep everything you can. How much time have you put in lately? How clean is your Karate? Is it time to stand in front of your Sensei again? Maybe start with asking your peers to have a look? Anyhow, I'm headed back down to my Dojo…I've got some more 'cleaning' to do - feel free to join me, this is going to take awhile.
Craig