Griffith Shukan News



Thursday, 4th September 2008





CONTENTS:



1. An Appeal to Members & Friends



2. Congratulations To All Who Graded On Saturday





3. New Weapons DVD Available







1. An Appeal to Members & Friends



We are looking for new premises! As many of you know or suspect, our Nathan
dojo is pretty much at capacity. We have been consistently getting 40+
people on the mat all the way through winter. This is unprecedented in our
club. It is very likely now that the weather is warming up that we will
have 50-60 a night in the next month or two. This is not altogether a bad
thing because it means that lots of people enjoy the benefits of Aikido and
it makes for a very alive and vibrant club. However, it will get a little
squeezy on the mat. We can't add another night at our current location
because other martial arts clubs use it on Monday, Wednesday and Friday
nights. Short term options include rearranging times & classes on our
current nights. We could also slow down the number of beginners who start
each month but it's not our preferred option because we want Aikido to be
accessible to everyone. So ultimately we need to find either a bigger space
or a similar size space which gives us more access on weeknights. To retain
most of the people who currently enjoy regular training at Nathan it should
probably be located in the general Southside area. High(ish) ceilings for
weapons and reasonable parking are also important. We are a not-for-profit
association so the level of rent is also an important consideration. Whilst
we are unable to afford full commercial rent, there may be commercial spaces
that sit idle and need guarding during evenings and weekends that could suit
us nicely. It doesn't necessarily have to be the traditional church hall or
scout hall. So if anyone knows of a venue that might suit our needs please
contact me at gary@... or see me at class. Please put your
thinking caps on!



Many thanks.



Gary



2. Congratulations To All Who Graded On Saturday



Hi All

Just a quick thank-you to everyone who turned up for the gradings on the
weekend (especially my fellow ukes - I certainly needed a break here and
there). We were treated to a fine display of Aikido from all involved.
Congratulations are in order to:


Nidan
Benjamin Tan



Shodan
Gary Weigh



2nd Kyu
Keita Hada




Sandy Lokas
5th Kyu
Jason Hourigan

3rd Kyu
Craig Mann

Peter Arbouin


Gunter Horvarth

Fleur Scott

4th Kyu
Rui Cassin

Roy Scott


Evan Haklar
6th Kyu
Mark Hoffmann


Nils Moolman

Wendy Kay


Adam Reid

Joel Gallagher




Michael Lee




Matthew Jesse




Highlights included some beautiful Tanninzugake from Keita and Sandy as
well as a couple of wonderful bloopers from our newest Shodan student - none
other than "El Presidente" of the club (AKA Gary). It is also a privilege
to watch the progress of our more junior students as they discover for
themselves layer upon subtle layer of our art.

Maruyama Sensei, the founder of Aikido Yuishinkai constantly advocates the
benefits of using relaxed power - "When you relax, your Ki extends
naturally." This Ki is our connection to uke, to the universe. It protects
both uke and nage from harm while we dance and allows us to perceive and
react to attacks as if they were launched at us through treacle or some
other viscous liquid.

It is no magic, just the fact that a quietened mind can more easily hear the
breathing of the universe. For those who are anything like me, quietening
the mind doesn't come easy. In fact it requires practice at every
opportunity.

Relax, breathe, have fun and play safe!

Ben H.



Message From Jutta Sensei



WOW! What a day!

From the lowest to the highest we were given fantastic performances during
an almost 2 hr grading session.



It was the enthusiasm of each person grading which was so inspiring. Not
did the people grading only display great concentration to make sure to
remember "moon-shadow/lizard-leg" but they also showed a great joy of being
there, getting ahead and the delight in putting on a new colour belt, which
for some was their very first colour.



Thank you also to Sheree for providing the celebration lunch in spite of her
not having been too well.



And once again congratulations to everyone who graded including the
beginners who graded on Thursday, 28th.







3. New Weapons DVD Available




Michael Williams Sensei (Aikido Yuishikai - International Chief
Instructor) has just signed off on the long awaited Weapons DVD set.
This 2 DVD set demonstrates the Aiki-Bokken and Aiki-Jo basics,
exercises, Tori, Kumi katas and Hitori katas professionally filmed
with 3 different angles to choose from. As a special thanks to the
Griffith Aikido club for their support during the making of this

project, the first 50 copies will be available at a reduced price of $35
instead of the regular $45. This offer will be limited for one
night only at the Griffith Aikido Nathan dojo on Thursday 11/9/08
6:00-6:15pm before class.


Please note there is no EFTPOS available at the dojo.

Anyone else who would like to purchase copies for themselves or their
dojo please contact Simon Russell highvale@...





--------------------------------------------------------------------------------











Griffith Aikido Newsletter Editor



Shirin Mohebbi



Email: shirin(AT)internode.on.net