Cas raté

My son, after five months of karate, has decided I ought to do some as well.  He probably came up with that conclusion because I’m proficient in each sport he tried before, tennis, swimming, horse-back riding etc. He’s sort of used to mom being good at it, whatever it is, so with karate, I’m sadly behind.

Karate? I raised my left eyebrow, assumed my most reasonable motherly tone and said….: “Well son…Why not?”

Two days later I was signed up. Now, my son’s school, Yoseikan Budo, breaks for summer. Since I wanted to get some basics under my belt (get it?) I signed up with what was available, Kiokushin. My sources indicate that Kiokushin is the most violent and full contact of karate’s methods and that is not necessarily what appeals to me. But like I always say, I’ll try everything once. The training is supposed to be hard so it can only do me good. If I hate it, I’ll fold my karate-gi until fall and wait for my son’s school to re-open.

This being my very first incursion into that world, I’m very curious, and I very much intend to cast a keen/satirical eye about me. If there’s any material for the blog, you can be sure you’ll hear all about it. Karate, as taught in North America, as practiced in small suburban schools, as seen by a gaijin…