I was hanging my laundry before work this morning and managed to catch the sunrise. It would look a lot better without the power lines, I know, but I didn't have time to walk down the road that far. I also figured out how to center my direct links from Photobucket. Yes, I am still having trouble uploading photos to Blogger, and I see from the help group that I am not the only one. Others are having this problem as well, but no one seems to know what to do about it. I sent an e-mail to blogger support, and all they did was to send a reply containing links to everything I'd already read. Some support that is.
James and I had a long text Thursday night. He is talking about quitting karate. I asked him what was wrong, and he said that he is sick of the way sensei is handing out belts left and right, without requiring anything of the students. Sensei promoted Brian Thursday night without testing him, and without requiring that he know the kata for his next rank. Now, if anyone deserves to have some slack cut, it definitely isn't Brian. He is rude and disrespectful. He smarts off to sensei in ways I'd never have dreamed of doing, even when I was 14. He doesn't want to learn his kata or self defense. All he wants to do is fight--both physically and verbally, and he gets downright abusive. He has a chip on his shoulder the size of Mt. Rushmore, and seems only to be in karate to prove how tough he is. Yet sensei promotes him just to keep him in the school. He doesn't want to lose Brian's monthly dues.
You see, with sensei, it's not about the art any more. It is all about the money. And the art suffers for it.
I encouraged James to stick with it for himself, and not to worry about what everyone else is doing, but it was really hard of me to say that. I feel like quitting myself. In my dojo, even though sensei says black belt is only the beginning, it is the end. Black belts in my dojo are non entities. Non students. I guess we are expected to do all our learning and training on our own time, away from the dojo, because we certainly don't get any instruction in the dojo. But if that is the case, why even bother to go? Why pay all that money (that I sure can't afford now that I am going to have a house note) just to stand on the sidelines and watch. And that job he offered me as an instructor in the after school program? Never panned out. He hasn't mentioned it again, though the program has been going on all this week.
I suppose James and I could start our own class there on the sidelines. That's what we've been doing for the last month anyway.
Speaking of school, I already got a note home from Cody's math teacher that he has not turned in two homework assignments. He's only been in school for a week! I told her that anytime he doesn't do his homework or classroom assignments, to send me an IM that same day, and I'd put the whammy on him. Heh, I ought to tell ALL his teachers that.
I think I will...
6 comments:
That is really too bad about your training situation. Are there any other martial arts schools nearby? Frankly, I wouldn't want to go there either if thats the way your sensei handles things. I feel lucky to be in the school I am in. You EARN your blackbelt in my school. With blood, bruises and grass burns on your elbows and knees from doing commando crawls across the football field...but enough about my testing cycle..hahah. Really, though..all the senseis at my school are respectful of everyone..no matter what rank you are, and they expect the same respect from their students. If there are any students (and there have been) who have bigger egos than is acceptable, they are squashed. Its all about humility.
I wish there were other schools in this area, but ours is the only one in town. The closest martial arts school of any style is about a 45 minute drive away. The closest Isshinryu school is an hour drive away.
I suppose if I get desperate enough, I can go to that dojo run by the blue belt...
Our Sensei comments that he started his dojo not because he really wanted to own a dojo, but because he wanted people to train with, and to challenge him.
Promoting people simply to keep them around is a losing proposition in the end. More people end up leaving when they see unfairness than stick around because they benefit from it.
Wow, I'm sorry for your situation. In my dojo, all the black belts train along with the lower belts. So you don't train when you go to class? You teach instead? If I got fed up with my dojo, there are many types of martial arts where I live. Right now, my dojo is 15 min. away from my house.
In my association, you have to be a third degree black belt to open a dojo, so I couldn't even if I wanted to. That's the whole thing. I don't want to open my own dojo because when would I receive instruction, and from whom? I keep trying to tell sensei that he's got to run a quality school or it won't last. He thinks he knows what he is doing though.
I don't have a workout place at home. I usually do kata in my living room, or weapons outside.
Lizzie, no, I don't train unless I stand in the back and do basics with the class. I don't have to do that if I don't want to, but I usually do. Sometimes I help teach, but not regularly. I don't really like to teach anyway.
I almost didn't want to get my black belt, because I still want to learn.
Cindy, sensei started his dojo for the same reasons, and we used to have a really good dojo. He cared back then. But now that he wants the dojo to be his sole income and support for his family, all he cares about is the money.
I don't want to quit, but it just gets so frustrating sometimes!
Post a Comment