The dojo is getting a much needed facelift with new drywall and insulation. Don’t get me wrong, I am very grateful for the steel building that we now call home, but winters here are pretty brutal. The ability for metal to transfer cold is a real thing, not to mention all the gaps for air, dust, bugs and small critters to pass through. I mean, I’m happy to have more students but I don’t think mice should be a part of class.
Training in an environment with no air conditioning and no heat requires a certain level of commitment. We’ve been blessed over the years with people who want to come and train despite the lack of creature comforts, but kicking objects and people with frozen toes or falling on rock-hard mats…well, that’s probably a little too Spartan-esque. Still, adding certain environmental controls is a huge shift in my mindset as a martial arts teacher. And I think that’s a good thing.
In 25 years of teaching, I made a point to drive people away from the dojo. In my view, I’d rather have students who demonstrate their willingness to put up with harsh conditions, be it weather, pain or endless repetitions than people who are just looking for a hobby and have a certain expectation for how the place looks and feels. And over the years, we have produced some excellent aiki and karate practitioners. I still believe in this mindset fundamentally, but my view has broadened with age, experience and life.
I’ve had a lot of time to contemplate all these things because drywall takes FOREVER, especially when you attach it to the ceiling. For the most part, it’s been a great experience because many of our students have come out to help in one way or another. But the pace of operations slows quite a bit when only one person (me) has the time to put the work in. This is as it should be; it is my dojo and ultimately my responsibility. So, I’ve had a lot of time to think while I work, which is a very Zen thing to do.
If you’ve ever worked with drywall, you know it’s a long process no matter your skill level. The guy who invented drywall tape (it’s what you use over two ends to cover the seams) should be in jail. And drywall screws…finicky little boogers. And of course there is the the joint compound, aka “mud” that never seems to go on with one stroke. I simply can’t wait for all the sanding that’s about to happen. Nothing says “good morning” like drywall-induced snot build up. Yep, it’s process, but a necessary one for us to achieve a stronger, more suitable structure to call home. It’s a lot like training.
What we are doing to the dojo is building the infrastructure so that we can have a clean and relatively comfortable place to train. Infrastructure takes time, planning and commitment just like budo (martial arts) training. Similar to seeing a building project all the way through, maintaining our zeal during long hours on and off the mat perfecting our technique requires us to see past the hurtles. For the average person training in traditional martial arts, those hurtles can deter and even drive us away from our original goals and intentions.
If I quit the building project right now (and believe me, I’ve thought about it) and just threw the mats back down and opened classes again before we finished everything, the improvements and refinements meant to enhance our training would be incomplete. The same thing happens to people who stop coming to class and/or practicing on their own. Budo training is first and foremost about building a strong infrastructure. The physical accomplishments are finite; your body will eventually fail you. Trust me on that one. But what you achieve mentally and spiritually - those things will last a lifetime if you keep it up. The key is not to quit your project before it’s completed.
Unlike a building project, martial arts training does not require long hours of work every day. But it does require daily practice. This is the part that throws a lot of people off because they have this idea that they have to put in one or two hours a day. That’s easy if you are a young college student with no commitments other than school and a part-time job. Not so easy if you are a young parent working your butt off to put food on the table. Believe me, I’m not the first person to say this. In his book, Karate-Do Kyohan, the founder of Shotokan Karate, Gichin Funakoshi states that training for short periods (consistently) is superior to long arduous sessions. The average karate kata, for example takes about one to two minutes to practice. I think Funakoshi Sensei realized that the average person doesn’t have a lot of time during the day, but daily practice is essential even if you only have a few minutes. Don’t stop your building project.
Speaking of projects, I’m off to buy more insulation. I’ve been to the hardware store so many times in the last week, they all know my first name like “Norm” on Cheers. I am looking forward to completing the dojo updates, but the process has been educational. And, I’ve had to practice patience and commitment to get things moving in the right direction. Education, patience and commitment…kinda like Zen and martial arts.
Dave Magliano
Jissenkan Budo
Dojo Cho
Invest in a wide mud knife. Thank me later.