 I want to start by saying it was the first time I had taken part in a seminar outside our dojo. So it was clearly an experience that forced me to leave my comfort zone. I was very intimidated by the level of the participants. Indeed, we were only a few who were not black belt and I couldn’t help thinking that I was white belt only less than 2 months ago. However, I was totally amazed by Craig’s ease! All of his movements are clear, defined and refined. There is no unnecessary movement of legs or arms. Everything is perfect and it gives a perfect result.
The seminar was about the concept of connections. We learnt to explore these connections within the Bujinkan. Short connections and long connections, visible and invisible ones. I will not deny that I had a little difficulty keeping up the pace at the beginning, but I tried to open my mind and let myself be guided to places yet unexplored. I understood many things and I think that, unfortunately, there are just as many that I did not understand. It will probably come after a lot of practice. At least I hope so.
There are some points, however, that marked me more than others. Among other things, I realized the importance of adaptation, of being able to adjust the technique or to use a completely different one, depending on the opponent’s reactions and not the other way around. Personally, I had often the tendency to force a bit to make the technique I had in mind work. I knew it wasn’t the right thing to do, but knowing it and experiencing and understanding it are two totally different things. I also realized that the line between the success and the failure of a technique is very thin. A few centimetres off or a limb improperly positioned can make all the difference between a devastating technique and an imitation without much of an effect.
In conclusion, I must say I’ve really appreciated my experience, because it has allowed me to discover a new approach. I’m also very proud to have had the privilege to take part in this seminar. Thank you very much.
David  |
For me, last weekend was the second time I saw Craig Olson, the first being in April this year, at the Canadian Taikai in Toronto, where he was among other instructors who had come from all over Canada. I had appreciated then the fluidity of his movements and the natural way of his techniques, so I was happy to hear he was going to do a seminar in Quebec.
I wasn’t disappointed, because he shared with us what is being done in Japan right now and also his understanding and his interpretation of this year’s theme, the connections.
I must confess I didn’t understand everything he showed and there were moments when I felt a bit lost, but in the end it was a wonderful experience and I’m glad I had the opportunity to go to this seminar. It allowed me to see that, in spite of it all, I did make enough progress since I started practising last year to motivate me to keep going on this path.
So, the connections. Craig talked a lot about this during the seminar: the connections between Tori and Uke, between Tori and everything around him or her, connections that are always there, whether we see them or not. He talked about the importance of being aware of what’s surrounding us, about adapting to our Uke and taking into account his reactions when we do a technique, about placing ourselves in the right spot in relation to our opponent, and, of course, about always remembering to move our feet.
I really liked the exercise with the sword, where all we had to do was walk around and someone in the crowd would draw their sword without being seen and stick it in the back of one of us. This shows once again the importance of keeping our eyes open, because we never know what might happen.
In the end, the weekend was full of lessons and I’m happy I was able to go to the seminar, for I had also the pleasure to see some friends again and make new acquaintances.
Thanks everyone
Luiza |
