Autumn Lightning

"In the changing of the times, they were like autumn lightning, a thing out of season, an empty promise of rain that would fall unheeded on fields already bare".
Abe Shosaburo, master swordsman of the Yagyu Shinkage Ryu

I am a fencing instructor in the United Kingdom who believes that there is room for more tradition and concentration on the benefits of the sport to the person, rather than the single minded pursuit of victory at all costs. I have no problem with modern competition and indeed have nothing but the highest regard for the elite members of my sport. Howvere, I believe that the sport needs to return to some of it's roots and provide a past-time and way of participating in it that allows greater involvement for everyone. I realise that my old fashioned way of looking at things will not sit well with everyone and that some of my thoughts that I will detail on here seem out-moded and bizarre but this is just the learnings of my 15 years of coaching and 20 years of participating in the tradition. In many ways I am a "thing out of season" as well.
I am a great believer in the idea that Western martial traditions/sports can learn a lot from the Eastern ones in many ways. This is a theme that I will also return to throughout this blog. I welcome comments from fellow fencers, coaches and martial artists. It's never too late to stop learning and thinking!