Aikido Master

I would have to say the best thing to happen to me since getting out of school is Aikido. I do not exaggerate.

Aikido has kept me from going out of my mind with cabin fever as it gets me out of the house for five hours (hour trip there, about two hour class, hour trip back, and one hour for Egypt time (spent waiting at the dojo or afterwards cleaning myself up)) three days a week.

Also my Aikido adventure puts me regularly in contact with Egyptians. If I did not have this, I would not really be talking to any of them, except for shopkeepers. I am not really able to go and talk to people in a café as others are. This makes me very fortunate. I lived with Egyptians during the school year and now I have regular contact with them. It makes my stay here worthwhile. When I leave for home, which I can’t wait for, I will be taking along contact information from several good Egyptian Aikido friends (possibly the best kind).

Also, it is Aikido. For me not much more needs to be said but I will explain anyway. I love Aikido. I get extremely happy during and after practices (those of you in the dorm should know), and it makes my life easier when I follow its philosophy. Spending time outside my home dojo has been incredibly challenging and a great learning experience both in terms of Aikido techniques and how well I can apply its philosophy to a new Aikido setting. I am also forced to see where my training is deficient. I see these deficiencies because dojos aren’t the same. The pattern that you fall into in yours may let you ignore easier what you really need to work on. I am not saying my dojo is deficient in this respect (it is solely an internal thing), in fact I prefer it to any I attend. But I had to adjust my rhythm to fit the new beat of the dojos in Egypt in terms of the people, the small variations on technique approach to basics, and the lifebeat of the dojo. Don’t get me wrong it is more the same than different, but different nonetheless. It was kind of a jostling where I am able to see my whole Aikido self in perspective. It is as if it is (talk about awkward but I like it) an out of body experience where you see what you need to work on.

I have always thought learning Aikido was an upward experience. My upward growth continues until today but coming to Egypt also brought an outwards learning (a horizontal expansion). I hope to bring that sort of mentality back to my home dojo and continue to use it there, and I also know that none of this would have been possible without my training under my sensei as well working with the other Aikidoka in America, especially those at UMBC. For my sensei and classmates, I am especially thankful.