A Good Feeling

So of course, I did kendo again today. Today I actually did break a sweat and it felt good. Really good. If you don't know anything about martial arts, I advise you to skip this post, as you'll probably find it boring. I'm not really writing to entertain as much as I am to inform anyone who's curious about what's going on in my life, and right now, it's kendo.

Two days and I am already completely in love with the sport. There are so many similarities that sometimes I think it's just karate with a different name. Interestingly, I also think there is absolutely nothing the same about this sport. They taught me how to travel a little today; the front foot moves straight forward and then the back foot follows so that you end up directly in front of where you started. I started out okay, but ended up doing revised stepping front stances (which travel at angles instead of straight back and forth). There were many many times I felt comfortable doing something, only to learn I was doing it completely wrong. But then there were other times when even the things I was doing wrong were the same things I always do wrong. Keep your shoulders back, they told me. Relax them. Draw your power from your center. God. How many times have I been told to keep my shoulders back? A hundred? Every freaking day of my life for the past six years? Maybe. And now, half a world away, they're telling me the same thing. Sensei Hartzell will be pleased. And when I come back, gosh darnit, I will have a straight back.

Today was more difficult than yesterday. When I got home, I couldn't lift my chopsticks without shaking. It was the hardest meal I might have ever eaten. Scratch that. After my green belt test might have been the hardest meal I've ever eaten. But today rivals. I have blisters on my hands and feet. I am sore. And I feel great. I can't wait to go back tomorrow and asatte and ever day. I like that it's semi-easy to disguise that I'm the foriegner during kendo practice (until someone tries to talk to me =)) and I like how familiar the atmosphere feels. How my role as a student is completely the same as it was in the States and my Sensei here treats me very much like my Sensei at home does.

In other news, I'm coming down with some kind of throat thing. No good. I hope I'll sweat it out tomorrow or something. The worst is just a nasty, deep cough, and I hope that'll be gone by tomorrow morning. I don't want to get sick.