Dear Students, Teachers, Parents and Friends,

The belt graduation yesterday and the black belt pretest went
extremely well. I was very impressed with the quality and the
attitude of the students. Each and every one of you should feel very
good about your performance.

I have had several questions about the Pikes Peak College Karate
Team and we will be having try-outs the second week of classes and
we will award scholarships at that time. We are especially
interested if you are a brown or black belt, as we get many
beginners that try out each semester. For more information just e-
mail me at Kyoshibryan@....

Dawn Schmidt is on her way to Okinawa to defend her title at the
world championships. We wish her the best of luck and look forward
to her returning with the "Gold".

The American Black Belt Academy has long been known for its quality
of students and instructors. Our Street-Wise Success and our Black
Belt Leadership programs have been written about in national
publications and our schools have been visited by people around the
world wishing to duplicate our programs. That being said, we have
recently finished evaluating our business systems and have found
that we need to make changes in order to offer superior customer
service. One of those changes is to increase our staff so that we
will always be available to answer any questions you may have while
at the dojo. The following staff has been picked to serve you at our
primary locations:

North School:
Chief Instructor – Sensei Jeremy Bryan
Program Director – Sensei Jennifer Yi
Assistant Instructor – Sensei Scott Richardson

Central Location- 2304 Bijou:
Chief Instructor – Sensei Scott Richardson
Program Director – Sensei Derek Blanton
Assistant Instructor – Sensei Jessica Richardson


Ju No Ri – The Art of Resiliency

In Chinese thought the principle of resiliency is called wu wei and
in the Japanese language it is described as ju no ri. Many times in
Budo, it is explained by discussing the difference between bamboo
and a strong hardwood tree. When faced with an overwhelming wind,
the mighty tree breaks and dies while the bamboo simply lies down,
only to stand up the day after the storm.
As martial artists we need to understand this principle in picking
the right fights to fight, as well as the right strategy in dealing
with any conflicting situation or problem. While a strong outside
block may be appropriate against a punch, an attack with a baseball
bat would dictate a totally different response.
The timing of the use of this principle is important as well. During
a dispute, giving in or yielding early in the process may indeed
prevent the situation from ever escalating to a physical problem. In
strategic planning we often have to yield to everything we want and
concentrate on the most important issues that need to be handled
first. Likewise, in a self-defense situation against multiple
opponents, we always need to deal with those that impose the most
serious threat at this moment in time and then once that is
resolved, we move on to the next opponent.
One of the key principles of ju no ri is one of keeping our egos in
check. To detach ourselves from the situation and doing the right
thing based on the facts instead of listening to our egos and what
we think we deserve. By taking a moment and truly looking at the
facts, we can many times understand that this particular situation
is not worth fighting over.
To adhere to the principle of ju no ri and learn to yield in the
face of opposition until it is time to fight the important fight is
a hallmark of someone that is on their way to understanding black
belt leadership.

Respectfully,
Terry Bryan