Halloween Seminar Day 3 and Family

Sunday morning class started at ten and I arrived ten minutes before class. Ikeda Sensei stopped me and we talked for a minute or so and I was able to change and get on the mat before Saotome Sensei started class. The first half of the class we worked on kaeshiwaza from a wide variety of attacks and counters, I felt more in sync with Saotome because of my own kaeshiwaza class on Thursday night. We practice a large number of different kaeshiwazas, here are the few that stand out:

• munetsuki kotegashei to kaitenage
• munetsuki kotegashei to sankyo
• munetsuki kotegashei kokunage (a number of variations include the one in Ledyard Sensei's video)
• munetsuki iriminage to ikkyo on the hand holding your head
• munetsuki ikkyo to ikkyo
• munetsuki iriminage to shihonage

After a ten minute break, Saotome Sensei came back and we worked on a number of techniques from a yokomenuchi strike including one kokyunage where nage enters deep into uke raises both hand up and brings the outside foot up and a sweep to uke's knee.

The entire morning I felt a richness and deepness in techniques on the mat. I feel my increased practice schedule including teaching at Pikes Peak Aikido, has improved my Aikido and my life. Such enjoyable moments in life are treasures to be savored and remembered and my joy continued when I returned back to my sister's house in Broomfield. I helped her and my two nieces, Alexis and Adelaide, carve two jack-o-lanterns for Halloween. I then watched the first half of one of the worst Broncos game I have ever seen with my brother-in-law Lance, before heading home to Colorado Springs. I had such a great weekend with my family and my Aikido friends.