This year we celebrated the New Year by holding our first annual Etsunen Keiko, or “Year End Practice”. We opened the dojo around 11 PM on December 31st and started class around 11:30. At midnight we paused, turned off the dojo lights, and watched the fireworks on Pikes Peak. After the fireworks, courtesy of the AdAmAn Club, we resumed keiko and practiced until about 12:30 AM. After class we celebrated with Sake, Champagne, and some snacks. Our Keiko Osame (our last full practice of the year) was on Dec 30th, this year. Keiko Hajime (our first full practice of the year) was on January 1st.
Etsunen Keiko is an annual Aikikai World Headquarters (“Hombu Dojo”) tradition that we are adopting. We had a visitor this year from Pikes Peak Aikido, and we look forward to hosting more visitors at our Kagami Biraki celebration on the 11th.
The time between Etsunen Keiko and Kagami Biraki is a great time to reflect on both last year’s keiko and personal training goals for 2020. It’s also a great time to reflect on those we lost in 2020. Among people lost in 2019 were Hitoshi Izuka Sensei of Akita Aiki Shuren Dojo (Kawabe Dojo), and Steven Shaw Sensei of Aikido Tanshinjuku (Broomfield, Colorado).
While I did not personally know Izuka Sensei, he was Sempai to Mark Larson Sensei, and was both a founding member, and a long term student, at Kawabe Dojo. It’s a good time to reflect on the fact that we owe a debt of gratitude to both our teachers and fellow students. We owe the same debt to those that have supported our journey down the Aikido path.
I also did not know Shaw Sensei very well. We met, for the first time, on the day he passed, at the 2019 Denver Aikido Summit. Shaw Sensei taught a dynamic class that Liz and I both enjoyed. I had an opportunity, during class, to both be thrown by him, and to throw him. After teaching, Shaw Sensei stepped off the mat to take a break, and suffered a heart attack. He was rushed to the hospital, and passed away later that evening. I regret not having the opportunity to have trained with him more than I did. I am grateful that I was able to attend his final class. He was a dynamic teacher and he had strong Aikido. His love for both Aikido and teaching was obvious. I believe I took something positive away from our meeting. Shaw Sensei’s life serves as a stark reminder to us all that life is ephemeral.
We’ll be holding Kagami Biraki on January 11th this year! The training focus will be on Bukiwaza. Visitors and observers are always welcome!
