The youth senior belt class this week morphed at times into the Ministry of Silly Walks. Students walked around the dojo on the insides and outsides of their feet. They rocked heels to toes, and twisted from outside inward. All of this silliness paid immediate dividends in improved rooting of sanchin stances and kata.
These junbi undo / preparatory exercises were courtesy of Sensei Paul Enfield, and I was reminded of them by one of the warm-up drills at the recent Gasshuku. Thank-you Sensei Erik Angerhofer.
Ages ago, a sensei once told me that he had "forgotten more karate than he remembered". In my youth, I thought he was simply being humble. As I get older and possibly more forgetful, I realize how candid that quote was.
This is a layered value of always training and striving for continuous learning. Yes, we acquire new skills, but we also bring fresh perspective on knowledge we already possess or may have forgotten. Oh yes, "Karate is like hot water."