by Phillip Starr
Life goes on, despite our disappointments and I taught gong-fu for several decades before meeting the gentleman who would offer to teach me iaido. I was thrilled! NOW, after all these years, I'd get to train in this art! And I dove in head first!
I was a beginner again, and that was okay (no, I didn't give up practicing gong-fu; I just started something new in addition to my “wife” art). I thought I had some idea of how to handle a katana (Japanese sword) properly...until I took up iaido. It took me at least two years just to figure out how to grip it properly. Even now, after more than four years of practice, I still foul it up now and then. Not only that, but the footwork is considerably different as well.
The katana is employed in a manner that is very different from Chinese swords. My favorite has always been the broadsword, but decades of practice with that weapon did me no good at all when I picked up a katana.
My teacher is a very patient man and that's fortunate for me. I've never been a quick study. He gently corrects me even after I've made the same error a thousand times! And now, after six years of practice, I still haven't taken an examination. I have no interest in obtaining rank; I just want to learn. I'd like to honor my teacher and take an exam, but I can scarcely afford to travel to the big regional or national events where they're held.
Some people have asked me about beginning again, especially in an art that is so different from the ones I've been practicing for over six decades. I tell them that it's really very enjoyable being a novice again. You're never too old to start something new...
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