By Nagina P.
Being an adult learner going to Kagami Shin Kai (KSK) is an insightful experience for me. Never in my dreams did I think that karate training would be part of my daily life. Coming to KSK has become an exciting routine for me. I really look forward to this every week even if I’m intensely sore for two days after each class. It used to bother me but, like a routine, emerging fresh and active after every class is worth everything and then I remember this quote:
Do not fear pain, for as long as you feel it you know you are still alive" ~ Anonymous.
Self-Doubt
When I decided to join the dojo, I chickened out of my first class. I was having second thoughts. I met with Sensei, who encouraged me all along and made me believe that I can do this. There are other instructors who made me realize that there is nothing too much for me and that there is nothing I can’t do. Their encouragement and support along the way keep me going. Being an educator myself, I believed in this from the start:
"Teachers open the door, but you must enter yourself." ~ Anonymous.
Before I decided to join this dojo, there was only one adult in the first class. By seeing her doing the training in every class made me feel that I should be doing this as well. After two weeks of deliberations with myself I decided to join the class. First class was hard and I thought that I was making a fool out of myself, that this is not something I should be doing and that I should be watching my kids like other parents or sitting on the bench reading my book, etc. I had this debate going on in my mind, I was not sure which side was going to win. I decided that I would complete this session and then I would stop. I started reading some inspirational books and I like this one, which has kept me going until now:
"Empty your mind. Be formless, shapeless, like water. Now put water into a cup, it becomes a cup. You put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle. You put water into a teapot, it becomes a teapot. Now water can flow, or it can crash. Be water my friend." ~ Bruce Lee.
Mind Over Matter and my personal life
I started doing the training with my son. We are both in the same class, which was kind of awkward but I enjoy it a lot. He needed a push and I wanted to show him that it is not hard and impossible.
I was an athletic person during my youth and routinely did Yoga and other stretching exercises, but learning karate is a totally different story. In every class, I would be on the verge of giving up but after every class the trust that Sensei and other instructors instilled in me kept growing stronger. For the sake of my son, I had to perform on the same level. Earlier, I had a hard time understanding the names of all the moves but I started writing them on paper after class to practice at home. My daughter, who is at a higher belt level, and my son had a great role in helping me moving forward and correcting me when I made mistakes.
It has been two years; I am part of Mind Over Matter family. I feel now without this I would be missing something. I try to train on my own but due to other responsibilities around home and at work I miss it most of the time. If I can train for 2 to 3 times a week, it is good enough for me.
Mind Over Matter and my vitality
Being part of Mind Over Matter has given me lots of strength. I used to take escalators when I go to work; now I take the stairs and feel really good about it. I was always tired after coming back from work and didn’t have any energy left to help my kids or do my training. Not only has adding the training to my routine made me active, it also helped me in discipline. My son and I stretch or practice kata and correct each other every night before bedtime. I am becoming a better person not only physically and mentally, but also emotionally. I was an overly-emotional person but training once or twice a week had made me more trustworthy towards myself and others. At work, I am happier, active, alert and stronger.
The KSK team’s influence on me
I am a huge fan of all the instructors. The team at Mind Over Matter is super and well-polished with a variety of backgrounds and culture. When we train, I never see myself trained by someone who is two decade younger to me; I see the instructors as my guru whose instructions I have to follow to perform better. All the instructors have their heart in Mind Over Matter. When everybody is inside the doors of the dojo everyone suddenly transformed themselves into the dedicated teachers who have a soft spot for each and every student.
The best thing I like about training is stretching in the beginning and strengthening exercises at the end where all the belt levels have to come together to be the team that moves forward towards a common goal. Ending the session by sitting peacefully and reflecting is a great way to connect body, mind and soul.
At the end, I can only say that learning never stops, never give up and anything is possible. I did not know these and I have learnt over time. Being part of the Mind Over Matter has added a new perspective to my life and I would like to keep it going…hopefully to build strong foundation. Tune in regularly to see what other experiences I will share with you.
I want to end this post by adding two of my favorite quotes:
“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” ~Anonymous.
“And in the end it’s not the years in your life that counts; it’s the life in your years.” ~ Abraham Lincoln.
Thanks for reading,
Nagina P.