The Kids and Teens Class Times will flip back  to afternoons on Monday, August 12th.  The Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday classes will start at 2:30 and run till 5:30.  The Wednesday classes will disappear if I start teaching again at the Queen of Peace Academy this fall. 

Saturday and Sunday Aug. 3rd & 4th.
    This was a terrific weekend. Here in Gainesville, there were 14 kids & teens on the mat, with two adults. Mr. Herron was teaching along with Judith, Joy, Martin, Sandor and Simone, the most senior of the kids and teens students. They actually developed a new routine that the students feel is like another game. Wonderful! We will try that again next time.  
    Sensei Keith, his son Alex and I, along with Ian Phillips from the Aikido Orlando Dojo were up in the Fredericksburg area of Virginia at the Aikido in Fredericksburg Dojo for the first Nishio Style Aikido seminars East of the Mississippi since well before Nishio Sensei died in 2005. Arisue and Nakamichi Sensei's taught as a team for two seminars on two weekends, the first in New York and the second in Frederiksburg, Va.
     I trained often with these men for about 4+ years until the USS Independence got out of dry dock in late 1994. The last two years of my 6 years, I was out at sea for about 9 months of the year, so I would see them when the Independence was in port. I think Nakamichi Sensei was on 3 or 4 tours I gave my friends and I think Arisue Sensei was on at least one tour. If he didn't tour the ship, it was certainly not a slight. I loved showing everybody my ship! Nishio Sensei was on at least two tours. Nakamichi Sensei was at my retirement ceremony on the ship.
    The seminar was terrific! I learned more in depth about so many things, Aikido, Iaido and various people I know of in Japan. Many things I have been teaching for years were again verified as authentic and correct.
    Also new friends and connections were made with these students who have retired to the eastern U.S. after serving and studying Aikido in Thailand for many years.

 
Saturday July 27th.  There were 13 kids & teens for the July birthdays party.  Walmart didn't even have a day old cart out when I got there.  So there wasn't any different pastries, just cupcakes, ice cream, grapes and bananas.   Everybody made do with what we had.  Sandor tested and passed his Brown with black stripe test.  He didn't remember the Tokimune no Kun Bo 12 kata well enough, but he did well on the rest of the weapons, knife take-aways and empty hand techniques.  He did the attack side for both the 13 movement and 31 movement Jo katas, doing very well again.  He has told me he likes the empty hand but not the weapons.  He is smiling/grinning a lot when we do the Jo katas.  I'm hoping that as he gets more and more into the advanced weapons that his interest will be regenerated for those.  His sister Simone is about ready to test for her brown belt.  That will be good for her. 
     Next Saturday, Sensei Tom and Sensei Keith will be up in Virginia for the Nishio Style Seminar being taught by two of my friends from the Tokyo-Yokohama area.  I'm really looking forward to this.  This is the first serious Nishio Style seminar east of the Mississippi River since well before 2005 when Nishio Sensei passed away. 
    The dojo will be open for August 3rd.  Mr. Herron and his daughters and son are going to teach while we are gone. They have all become pretty proficient in their knowledge. Teaching will re-enforce that knowledge. So the Aikido of Gainesville dojo will be open for the free Saturday morning classes next Saturday, August 3rd.

Saturday July 13th. We had 8 kids and two adults on the mats. Christopher tested for Blue with a White Stripe and Rafa tested for Purple with a White Stripe. Both were successful. Rafa had trouble with techniques I knew that she knew, so I went through the test a second time to verify her knowledge. Sometimes the nervousness is too much. But I keep them going forward. They are moving towards overcoming their fears. We had one new boy this morning. I think he had fun and learned some things about rolling. Rolling is about 80% of the first test. It's important to know how to take falls, which often end in a roll out. Since practice most often is done with a partner and both learn the technique and the way to receive or to handle the take down by taking turns as attacker, then defender.

Thursday evening, July 11th.  Wonderful night!  We had 8 on the mats and conducted a split mat class with Nishio Style for the advanced students and Iwama Style for the junior students with some of the advanced students rotating between the styles to help the junior students.   Everybody learned something new, even me.  Alex, Joel and Travis were so impressed with practicing Gyaku Hanmi Irimi Nage as empty hand, then with boken (wooden sword) and later with the Jo (walking staff).  This was new for Joel, Travis, Judith and Joy.  I think they are beginning to understand why I refer to the Nishio Style as building the cathedral.  It's so much more than the regular building.
Joy said she felt like she was on a roller coaster when she was being thrown.  It's different and fun.   Alex pointed out that the boken and the Jo stressed different points that enhance the empty hand, which was something I had never realized before.  So that was what I learned tonight.                   

Wednesday evening, July 10th.  Todd was back from Homestead.  He's graduating and moving down there for his first agriculture job.  I presented him with his first certificate, then proceeded to blow his mind with Nishio Style techniques.   Shaun and Keith came to practice Nishio Style to get ready for the Nishio Style seminar in Virginia the 3rd and 4th of August.  Todd's wrists and Keith's hands are sore from house repairs work, so we worked on Irimi Nage.  Lots of open hand stuff, easy on the wrists and hands.   Todd thought this was terrific that we could incorporate the sword and walking staff and have practically the same movements whether doing empty hand or using weapons.   I have been encouraging Todd to try out Stephanie Yopp's dojo in Hollywood when he gets down there.  I've probably thoroughly spoiled him, so that's one of the few places he would be satisfied with to practice at.                          

Saturday July 6th.   We had 12 kids on the mats that morning.  That was pretty good.   The little boy who came in last week came back.   His family is traveling to Vietnam for nearly a month.  So I expect them back in August.  We have a very diverse bunch of students.  They are all born in America, but their parents are from different countries.  Just this morning we had the boy with Vietnamese heritage,  two girls with Bangladeshi parents,  3 girls and their mother who is from India,  Another girl has parents from eastern Europe.   The mother has told me the country, but I'm not positive at the moment.  I'm thinking Romania or Bulgaria.  They have traveled there this summer.   We did have some black kids practicing and progressing well, but not in the past year.   Things change and people come and go.   I love teaching everybody.        

Saturday June 29th.  Terrific day!  We had 18 kids and 2 Adults plus one new girl watching.  We also had a new little boy come in.  Both new families are new to Gainesville.  The June Birthdays party went well.  Not many cupcakes today cause the day old cart at Walmart was full of pastries at about half price so I stocked up this morning. We had a tasty party.  Afterwards I presented three new certificates for the new Brown belt students.  I had another certificate for a new Purple belt student I tested Thursday morning, but his family left just while we were cleaning up from the party.   They had another commitment, so I'll present that certificate next time they come.  I had the Brown belts and adults working with various groups.  and floated around to work some with each group.   No stripes given out this week, but good work towards them.  I will see what has been remembered next week, so many are primed to get stripes next week depending on what they remember from this week.            

We will hold the June Birthdays Party on June 29th, this coming Saturday.  We will play and practice from 9 to about 10:30am, then set up for the party with cupcakes, ice cream, grapes, bananas, perhaps some other pastries depending on what's on the day old cart early in the morning.  For drinks we will have chocolate milk, orange juice and apple juice.   There are certificates to present and perhaps we will have some students testing.  Monday evening Jun 24th, Judith passed her Brown belt test.   That makes three Brown belt certificates to present this Saturday.   Martin told me this was an easy test.  That makes me laugh, cause that was not what they were lamenting for the first 4 months of practice.   All three of them were crying how hard it was for months.  So once they understand the techniques, then they become easy.  I have started showing them how now they get to learn Nishio Style and there are those long faces again.  "IT'S HARD".  No, it's just something new to learn.           

Saturday June 22nd, only 4 kids this morning.  This may be normal for summer, one week lots of kids, then the next week only a few.  Two came back from a long vacation.  Worked with Rafa on some of her most difficult techniques to get her set to test.   She is remembering pretty good, but we need to go over more of her test to have an idea she can be successful.   Still missing Christopher, he hasn't been able to come for maybe 4 Saturdays.     

Thursday evening, June 20, Martin passed his Brown Belt test.   I was thinking he was not really ready and would have a difficult struggle, but he surprised me and went pretty straight through the test.  I had him repeat a few things, but overall it was a good test.  So he passed with a lumpy circle.  These kids work so hard when there are rewards on hand and there is a bit of competition between siblings or friends.  I love it and I am continually proud of them.                    

Saturday June 15th, we had 11 kids and 2 Adults.   Back to more normal numbers this week.  Everyone except the most advanced students got stripes this week.  When Joy, Judith and Martin are here, they are helping the junior students and it's very difficult to get them alone to teach very advanced techniques.  They are such a tremendous help in bringing forward the other students, I am so grateful to them.  They are directly responsible for so many junior students getting more stripes.   This is what teaches the junior students to help the students junior to them as they progress.  This week the middle students were helping the new students as well, so we have become a very helping dojo.  Thursday Sensei Keith told me his son Alex is coming home from Taiwan in two weeks.  Keith says Alex is really anxious to get back to learning more Nishio Style.  I am overjoyed to have him back and get him ready for the Nishio Style seminar up in Fredricksberg, Virginia next August 3rd and 4th.         

This is a video of Saito Sensei teaching a seminar in Japan.  Maybe it's a university aikido club or perhaps multiple universities cause the average age looks like college student ages.  Probably you won't be able to understand the words, but you can still understand the teaching cause it goes more by demonstration than exactly what he says.  I linked it, so you should be able to just click on the url address here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzNa_7uufAs&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR16mgTh9-FqDmg1OPowQDP-lUQdXF0CRs8BNq0CbNwYm5rhjcD9VLwAGN0


I stumbled onto an old demonstration by Nishio Sensei.  It's the 11th All Japan Aikido demonstrations.  I think they are up to around 57 now so this must be back in the 1960's  I'm about 85-90% certain the Uke's are Nishimoto Sensei and Masuda Sensei.  Everyone is so much younger than when I practiced with them.  Nishimoto Sensei was my Uke and tested me for Sankyu at the old Matsuo Dojo.  He just called me up near the end of class and had me do techniques.  I didn't even know I was being tested.  How many white belts have a 7th Dan test and Uke for you at the same time.   That was special and I didn't even know it at the time.  I was still pretty clueless at the time.   This is the link to the video:   https://www.facebook.com/senseiaikidocom/videos/544548876016792/UzpfSTEwMDAwMTA0Njg4Njk3MzpWSzoyNDQ4NjUxNTQxODE2OTQw/                   


Sensei Keith was up in Virginia attending a Fukushidoin (assistant instructor seminar) in April.  To expand on Sensei Keith's experience of the weekend, he already knew much of what was being taught while many 2nd and 3rd Deg. blackbelts were seeing things as new.  It is always so gratifying to me when my students go somewhere and see that what I am teaching is spot on or even advanced to what others are teaching at the higher levels.  I know I'm a good sensei, but it's better when my students really recognize it for themselves.   Others may take my attitude as arrogant.  No, it's self awareness of what I was taught in Japan and what I continue to expand on and pass on. 
 

I received this wonderful Thank You from the woman who requested and coordinated bringing the children with Tourette Syndrome to the Saturday morning classes.  She said posting this was great with her.       
Simpson, Heather N.
Mon, March 2019
to Sensei Tom,
 
Thank you so much for welcoming our group this weekend.  I know that the children loved it and really enjoyed learning the activities.  In particular, while the kids were learning, the parents were bonding and connecting, which was a real bonus to Saturday.
 
I have taken your flyer and will hand it out whenever possible.
 
Your program is truly remarkable and I appreciate your kindness to the group.
 
Most sincerely,
 
Heather Simpson, OTD, MOT, OTR/L
Tourette Clinic Coordinator
Southeast Regional Centers of Excellence
UF Health Rehab Center at Fixel Center for Neurological Diseases

              
I received this great email complement from Nathaniel after his first class in Jodo, walking staff, last Thursday evening.  It's so nice I asked him if I could post it on the website.  He said he would be honored.  
Dear Sensei,
        Thank you for writing and for teaching a wonderful class. Having dabbled in various martial arts and numerous dojo’s over the years I have developed a good sense for quality instruction and found it in abundance on Thursday. And I feel very fortunate to be able to receive such a level of instruction within a small class (although I do not expect the class to remain small for long). The commute is a challenge but is what it is. I look forward to seeing you again on Thursday.
Best regards,
Nathaniel        

This video explains how to perform the first kata of the Aiki Toho Iaido developed by Shoji Nishio Sensei. I also explain about the cutting draw I was taught right from the start of my practice of Iaido. I did not need to change anything when I was introduced to Tasaburo Tokutomi Sensei, master of the Morinaga line of the Toyama-Ryu style of batto-jutsu, cutting of rolled rice straw matting.   Here is the URL of the first Aiki Toho kata  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBuEw99f3CE

The senior Kids students are not asking to play games at the beginning of class anymore.   They now realize that the Aikido is the "play" and they have graduated to a higher level of play.  I'm  hearing "I love this technique."  or  "This is my favorite Bo kata".    And just a few months ago the statements were "This is hard."  Now it has become "This is fun." 
 
I have decided to offer extra discounts of extra classes for parents or students who help clean the dojo while their kids or teens are in class.   I'm swamped so much of the time with keeping track of the dojo financially, keeping up the websites, doing maintenance, processing new videos and such that the cleaning is not up to snuff.   I think this can work out as a win-win for the dojo and the parents.  
 
The Aikido of Gainesville Dojo will be closed on Tuesdays during the day.   I might be there to do maintenance, but I will not be teaching on Tuesdays.  There will regularly be a Free Community Service Aikido Class on Tuesday evenings from 6:30 to 8pm.  Tuesday Evening practices may not always be open.   Please call ahead of time to determine if there will be a class that evening.  Call first Jun Evangelista 352-222-0872.  If no answer or Jun is not teaching, call Keith McInnis rd352-258-4725.