epistolary

I used to fret and get frustrated with, “should have been(s)”. I would watch K. Abe sensei perform hangetsu kata on you tube and compare it to the way sensei taught it. With all due respect, Abe sensei’s kata was unrefined, and crude. It lacked the intelligence and the subtlety that makes kata exquisite, and yet he had all the fame, fortune, and following, while sensei, who brought meaning, life and beauty to kata, struggled to make ends meet. These “should have been(s)” permeate all aspects of life. My own dojo, with its quality of instruction and care, should have been packed to the gills. My two cousins, as intelligent as they are, should have been the Elon Musk and Steve Jobs of their time. The restaurant that I frequent, with its fresh and consistently mouth watering food, should have been a thriving business. The dear friend that I have, who is always generous and helpful to a fault, should have had a more fortunate destiny of her own.

The blessing of lack dawned on me when performing a little known kata, and experiencing what I was missing all those years when I kept it in the margins. Hyaku Hachi Ho (Suparenpei) should have been a syllabus kata. It has complex tempo changes, varying circular blocks, directional changes, transitions from short, inside tension stances to long, outside tension stances as well as transitions from neko ashi dachi to sanchin dachi, and again from sanchin dachi back to neko ashi dachi. It is a kata that encompasses all the elements required for challenging and enhancing the mind, body, and spirit, yet few people know about it, or indulge in it.

The chagrin of not giving Hyaku Hachi Ho it its due attention, soon led me to realize that part and parcel of its value and specialness, was in its obscurity. Like sensei, the recognition of his unique gift was that he was unique, and a diamond in the rough, not meant for everyone… but for those who truly crossed paths with him, he gave them a gift that would shine and endure a lifetime. Imagine if everyone did kata like Abe sensei. Now imagine the few, who do it as sensei taught. Which world would you want to live in?

So, as you stumble through life’s struggles and lament the lacks of life, don’t begrudge the “should have been(s)”. Celebrate the fact that you were among the select few that got access to its specialness, or were unique enough to be blessed with the spirit, beauty, and ultimate peace and honor of not being ubiquitous.