Episode 959 - Uechi Con-versations Part 2
In this part 2 episode, Jeremy interviews some of the graduating class at the 2024 Uechi Con. These advanced rank students tested the night before.
Uechi Con-versations Part 2 - Episode 959
SUMMARY
This conversation explores the profound impact of martial arts on individuals' lives, emphasizing its role as a lifestyle, the continuous journey of learning, the importance of self-defense and awareness, and the legacy of sharing knowledge within the community. Participants reflect on their personal experiences, the camaraderie built through training, and the deeper understanding of martial arts as a means of personal growth and connection with others.
TAKEAWAYS
Martial arts is not just a practice; it's a lifestyle.
The camaraderie in training fosters a sense of family.
Continuous learning is a core aspect of martial arts.
Self-defense is about awareness and response, not just physical skills.
Training provides both physical and mental benefits.
The dojo serves as a home and a community hub.
Sharing knowledge enriches the entire martial arts community.
Martial arts teaches valuable life principles beyond the dojo.
Legacy is about passing on knowledge to future generations.
The excitement of training evolves but remains a constant in life..
CHAPTERS
00:00 The Journey Begins: Embracing Martial Arts as a Lifestyle
09:07 The Depth of Learning: Continuous Growth in Martial Arts
18:56 Self-Defense and Awareness: The Real Purpose of Training
26:43 Legacy and Community: Sharing the Martial Arts Journey
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Show Transcript
Jeremy (00:16.18)
Hello.
Jeremy (00:20.905)
Let's start we could do names. Let's start over here. Bill Adams. Judy Durkin. Leyn Burrows. Dan Diskin. Brenda Berkal. Rich Koeblin. This is where the sarcastic part of me wants to throw in something and you're all here because of and then say something completely inappropriate but I won't do that.
Jeremy (00:46.846)
You're here because you didn't stop. Right at the end of the day, your testing last night in the most simple of terms occurred because you didn't stop training. Why?
It's fun. We love it. Is that the only reason? No, but it's a big part of it. For me. I think the camaraderie that we have and the group that we have and the skill set that we've built over the years of beginning this process. Once you get bitten, you can't stop. It really becomes part of your life to build on what some of the earlier folks are. It becomes a lifestyle.
Jeremy (01:36.98)
We enjoy it.
Jeremy (01:42.452)
It is, it's a lifestyle. Mind, body, spirit, it takes over your whole life.
I think you learn how to encompass what you learn on the floor to integrate that into your off the floor life with your family, with your work, with friends. And I know me personally, this dojo is called the symbol on the hill. I always feel like whenever I come to the dojo, I'm coming home.
coming home with all the sisters and brothers of Rachael Rue. And it feels right about coming home. It's about something liberating and keepsake. That's where I feel about coming to work. it's work out. It's not so much an endeavor of torture or hardship. It's actually, what's that? Sometimes. Sometimes, well.
Over the decades, it's grown from the hardness, maybe more to the mildness and softness, and encompassing. So I feel that I'm connecting when I come to the dojo. And I feel all the members, extended members of the Razoroo family is our family.
In fact, this Reaching Con with all the other schools coming and spouse, I think it's a martial art convention. That's where I feel about it. That we could interchange what we've been learning for all these decades.
Jeremy (03:24.166)
I agree with what everyone said and I also still have so much more to learn. It is a deep style, so many details and I feel I can keep improving, hopefully. So that's why you just, you want more? I do and I enjoy the camaraderie and I know that I need to keep moving so I don't become a tin man.
Jeremy (03:51.028)
Pretty much what everybody else said to me it's a way of life and I realized that after just maybe one or two years of training and when I got my first black belt it was I don't want to stop this I just want to keep going and I've remained very consistent with it over almost 30 years.
Jeremy (04:16.446)
You're always learning something and you can refine your own style within Weichiru. It allows you to interpret.
different things, lot of different techniques, applications, you never stop learning. Never. And you're always looking for that opportunity of learning off of somebody else or just playing around with concepts. It doesn't make sense to stop. You said a little bit, Judy, but maybe you'd say a little more.
Jeremy. No, I think I just go because I enjoy it so much. There are two things specifically and one is the workout.
It's exhilarating. The physical control? Yeah, punching and hitting and kicking and receiving that too and being able to take it. really is a high. It's exhilarating. the second thing is the people. I have the best time. I think we all do. have a lot of laughs in class. It's not really strict or...
Jeremy (05:36.636)
It's not formal at all. It is, I'm sorry. You you bow, but everybody has a good time. Everybody has a great time. There's a lot of laughter. And someone said it earlier in the other panel, and sometimes, like, I'm so comfortable at home, and it's a beautiful day, I'll go up in the garden, but...
I know I have to go to class because I'll feel better and it's good for me physically and mentally. Those are often the best workouts too when you don't feel like going in. And that's when you should go. charged and ready to go. And then I leave and I'm like,
We all shake hands with each other after class. That was the best class. They're all the best class, it seems like. But it's just, it's a lot of You know, we have a phrase called, Mouchin, open mind, no mindedness. And like, getting ready for this convention, or even when I come to class, I have a ritual. I wash my gi, I iron my gi.
and I'm preparing to come to the workout that starts here the night before or during that early morning because I live in Berkshire, so it's a three and a half, three hour drive minimum. So, but it's a preparation. You know, it's a preparation to bring you in sync only before you get there. And so you come with open mind that we know what to expect.
but I try not to think that it's too much jaded or prescriptive, prescribed, that I'm longing to see, because it allows me to see even in the most simple move and the simple interaction, something new. So it's always discovery with this martial arts, really, know. George Madison mentioned many, many years ago that our style is like a pawn.
Jeremy (07:30.708)
not very large, but very deep. And you can forever reach in and find out treasure. Whereas some staves have very complex multi -move techniques, but maybe very shallow. So the richness, even after 50 years, is I'm still pulling out treasures. I'm still seeing things that I'm newly being discovered. And that's what makes it so appreciable.
still think it's the fact that you share those treasures because you learn them and then you share them with me. You did that just the other day. We were talking in class about balance and getting stronger and so forth and you were giving me your treasures.
Mr. Durkin said it all the time, rising tide raises all boats. As one improves, everybody else improves. I wouldn't say we're competitive, we're challenging to each other. We pair off. If you want to come and you want to be spiritual and soft and work on body conditioning and that side, in the Potokokai you can find that. If you want to come and be challenged by a pod who wants to kind of push you a little bit, you can come to the Potokokai, any one of our schools and find that. If you want to spot,
You want to fight? You want to really push it? We've got people that do that too. So this association has really something for everybody. You fit in. And there's no ego. There's no competition at a negative level. It really is that rising tide brings us all up. And that's what keeps us coming, really, because we have this family group.
It's a unique experience. That's why I say once you get bit, once you come and you experience it for yourself, you just can't walk away.
Jeremy (09:18.772)
I think it's a maturity level. You 50 years at Sensei's Heptase Dojo. 50 years, a lot of tradition, a lot of firsts, a lot of important things. But I think it's a maturity level. You know, we're moving into the adult world of the karate kai. Not so much young lions, you know, trying to discover and trying to find ourselves. We're sort of at that level where we understand a heck of a lot more. And now we're...
taking what we learn on floor into, like I said, into daily lives. And it's very meaningful. This is, this martial art is principle base. So it's not like the flavor of the month, the flavor of the week, the flavor of the year. There's so much richness that you could forever learn. And that's the beauty of what we're doing.
trying to get that wall too. I always think of this, we have a corridor in the Akita Dojo that separates the main dojo from when you walk in. You enter from the back in the student's entrance and there's a wall there. You're going to change and come out and once you bow in and you enter and you kneel down, you kind of empty a cup and you prepare for the class, whether you brought some things you want to work on on your own.
that will integrate into the class. That wall that separates that corridor from the dojo, I'm trying to make that wall disappear. I get a sense in there where I kind of flush everything, not all the craziness that's going on, I flush it. And I want to be that person inside and outside the dojo, have that same feeling about my life and about how I interact with people. So that's kind of a challenge the more you stay with it.
That's cool for you. I know, I think you do that. I try. I you do. There was a ritual maybe back in the 80s when, you know, we're what? So the 80s were like 17, 18 years into, you know, from the school. And the ball became very important. So even though was a lot of noise and activities in your life and maybe aspiration, just getting to the dojo.
Jeremy (11:21.296)
soon she was able to bow, you were learning.
to separate your outside life away from the practice. And you can go all in in the practice. And it was so cathartic, but when you left, as you were saying, you feel so good. So maybe the things you were disappointed in, flat tire, the wife yelling at you, or kids being on whatever, it didn't seem to be that so disappointing, because you felt so refreshed. And now, know, saying that maybe we can move that wall, that we can bow here.
we can bow at home because we're martial artists all the time, not just when we're in the dojo.
Jeremy (12:09.201)
You're making me work. Buzz always says that at the end of class too. Take your karate out there with you.
Someone told me years ago, it's a treasure. Keep it in your pocket. You know, when I first started studying, I didn't tell anybody. And I did it for a number years. There wasn't social media time. I mean, now I'm much more open and I've been doing it so long with social media. But when I first started studying, I didn't tell anybody. People I worked with didn't know, friends didn't know, my family were the only ones that knew. Because I didn't think people would really understand. You always get those questions like, have you been in a fight? Did you hit somebody? know, they don't understand the whole mind, body, spirit.
And maybe it went out it was early on I didn't understand that but the challenge that you're going through inside the dojo until you went to that space and you Work through it. You don't really understand so I kept it so quiet And and I was told it's a treasure keeping the pocket take it everywhere you go. So that's an expression. I like to use So on that I'm studying 53 years
And I have never, it's almost close. I've been in arguments. I've been in karate fights, tournaments. And I probably was pretty aggressive in some of the tournaments. But I don't think that I've ever had to use my karate at all outside of.
You You know, that's a legacy in itself. people thought I was crazy because some of the workouts I was doing, hitting poles, hitting things, I was a crazy guy. Some of that stuff might be worse than getting into a fight. Of course. But when you think about it, that's a really good thing that you don't feel that you... I've actually separated people, right, know, physically and stuff like that. But I really can't remember.
Jeremy (14:07.942)
beating anybody up. You know, I mean in the negative way, right? So that's something. You when you think about 50 odd years, you never had to apply. I've used it to have people break up like that. And if you had known going in, you know, before day one, you're never going to have to quote, use this to protect yourself on the street. Would you have done it?
Probably not because I wanted to be able to defend myself. I took it for that. And I also the journey for me, it's been internal. It's to get to a point where I know I don't necessarily have to fight. I have a lot more options than to fight. not saying that somebody attacked me that I wouldn't defend myself. That's different. But I could leave.
environment where it's just not healthy, I'm not interested in winning an unhealthy environment. I can lead. I have, you know, because the marshalling is about marshalling how I respond, not you, how I respond to the situation. And that's the real marshalling, I think, of being a master in the martial arts. It's not what other people are doing, it's how we are going to respond to the situation. It does not mean that I wouldn't defend my family or myself, but there are a lot more options sometimes.
than we think if we want to merit down. So the observation, the awareness, walking into a room, understanding where you are and knowing where the exits are, watching people, the arguing, maybe you don't sit close to that argument, you sit the other way, all these little things that we learned over years, real training, that's the real essence of it. Not walking blindly into an alley.
understanding that you know there are people out there that may want to harm you and stuff like that being aware so the awareness after all this years of training it's really important now go outside tonight outside the hotel get clubbed over the head and come back here and tell you something different. Hopefully not. I'm really hoping not. Would you have started training if you knew you weren't and maybe I'm making the assumption I think I saw everyone nodding along.
Jeremy (16:31.724)
We don't necessarily need to get into everyone's real world application of their training, but I'm not getting the sense from any of you that you've had a secret life as a street fighter. I definitely would have. As a kid, I always wanted to...
to get involved in martial arts. Didn't know anything about it, but I just wanted to do it. And it wasn't more for self -defense. As I got older, I got into middle school and high school, and I was like, yeah, you want to be able to defend yourself, because you get into those weird ages where people try to pick on you or bully you and this and that. But for me, it was something a little bit different. I don't know if it was spiritual or what.
I actually didn't get started in martial arts until I was somewhere around 32, 33. And it taught me how to protect myself.
Not that I needed it, meaning that I always would avoid any kind of altercations that somebody may want to try to get involved in. As they say with self -defense, the best form of self -defense is to stay out of trouble, get away from trouble. But by learning through karate,
that if I needed to, I could. I don't want to. I take and use the karate more for my own personal development and spiritual development, philosophical, obviously physical, but I don't need to be afraid of walking into a...
Jeremy (18:35.836)
in Harrier that may be a little hostile or walking down the street at night. You build some confidence and you know what to look for and you know how to deal with it. To the other four, I want to be respectful of time or you start to wrap here.
Would these two descriptions seem appropriate for each of you? I grew up in the city. I grew up in Boston and Dorchester, busing and didn't have a car until I was almost married. So I was on the T all the time.
was kind of a tough time in the city. I wanted to learn how to fight. I wanted to learn how to defend myself. I used to ride the red line. So you wouldn't have I would not have started. Yeah. It was a tough time. So I was very conscious as I've gotten older and more mature. They call me Ocean, my family. I'm very situational with this. I know where the exits are. I know the people in the room when someone shifts. watch when I'm on public transportation, getting on a plane. Anywhere I go, I'm very situational. And that's from growing up in the city, I think.
the person left -handed, where's the watch, what's the gate, how do they move, who's getting on and off. So I really wanted to learn how to protect myself. So that was my core thing. And I love, I love, I can't stress anymore, I think you do agree, the physicality of this. just, I yeah, I love it. But then as you mature and you get to the levels that we're getting in the years of experience, you balance it all off, looking for those other things to, for, you know.
for the other side to soften you, right? But I would never have started if it was not a physical, and I would say my license plate's Budo, if it wasn't a combative type of a system. But I live by the code of Budo, think, too. So there's that opposite side of it. So for me.
Jeremy (20:29.396)
That was not the case for me. My son started after his best friend started and they had researched all schools and found the best one. So I've been at Busdurkin's since my son was eight. He's 39. And I was so impressed, all the work on poise and confidence, self -control. And I wanted his older sister to go. She was extremely shocked. And actually, so was I.
And I am more comfortable with people and with myself. I think it helped open her up, helped control him. So I have never been in a fight outside the dojo and the increased awareness hopefully will maintain that forever. it's awesome.
Jeremy (21:24.158)
But to answer your question, I find it hard to answer because we don't know. how would I, but if, absolutely if I knew how much fun it was, how good I felt, I would definitely start. So we're gonna wrap.
Jeremy (21:46.356)
It's a little cliche because I think I know the answer, but think you go just a hair beyond that. Are you more excited about your training now than you were say 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 years ago? Less so? The same? I think it's.
different. It's not so much, you're always excited about your training, regardless of what stage you're at. You know, when I first started, yeah, I was like, wow, this is great, I'm gonna keep doing it. as you, years pass and you're consistent with your training, the excitement kind of changes a little bit. When you first started, you were learning a lot of things.
get the technique, you're learning conditioning, you're learning the basics. And with a lot of people, they, unfortunately, when they hit black belt, all of a they disappear. It's like their goal was to be a black belt.
Black belt to me is that you've just learned the basics. Now you're a black belt. Now you make it your own. you learn again the interpretation. You take the interpretation of the style and you learn the different ways in which you can use it. Not just on the physical part of it, but also mentally, emotionally. And you get excited about that part. And it makes it.
As I said earlier, you're always, always learning. You get to play with different things and mold yourself into it and into the style. Put your own interpretation into it. You people say, this is how you do this kata, okay, yes. You have your own way of doing it. Any one of us will perform the same kata and have a different blend of it.
Jeremy (23:50.866)
That's the exciting part is being able to take those movements and learn from them.
Jeremy (24:01.672)
So it's, the excitement is the same, but it's different. Not an answer I expected, but I'm glad. What more is there to say? It is still very exciting, but somewhat different. That's it? Yeah, no, very exciting. It's part of my...
routine. It's built into my schedule. My schedule doesn't change. It's karate. It's karate. I go to my classes. I think I've evolved and developed. Again, that taking that wall down. I think I've personally received the benefits of my family. My family, my relationships with folks outside of the dojo is much better. I'm a calmer person. I tend to be a very emotional person. So I think...
I train because I still like the physicality of it and I'm driven by that. I train because of the camaraderie of the Butoh Kukai. mean, it's like nowhere else. I train because of the benefits my family and I have together. And I want to just be the best I can be in the end. Whatever that turns out to be, it's the best I'm going to be. So that's what keeps me going.
Yeah, you know, I'm at that, I just got tent down. So you're at the of the mountain sort of thing. But I have, I retired seven years ago from professional work. And in the last seven years, I've been driven to provide volunteerism. I'm embodied with giving back. I think that...
I've been so blessed and on my journey through my work life, which was over 50 something years.
Jeremy (25:47.38)
commercial arts and karate and rachie rule was a blessing. was some really tough times where I didn't have to fight anybody, but I had to deal with people I worked with and maybe take their image outside with me and beat them up in the imaginary line, you know, me. So, and then be able to sit with them and feel, you know, at ease sort of thing. there was some impactful time when it really meant a lot outside of dojo through my work in life and family life. So it's been a blessing.
and here I sit later, know, this is something 50 something years ago. I feel so blessed in so many ways. So I believe in community building. I believe that what we have acquired that we want to give to others so that the legacy moves on. It's not about going to the grave and keeping all your treasures. It's giving it all away. know, in a way,
I believe in that. believe that we came into the world, and let's get philosophized, with very little.
And if I could have my way, I can't talk for my wife. I would try to give everything away if I know that I was gonna pass, you know, that sort of thing. But I really think that even at this time, that the desire is almost even more impactful than it was 50 -something years ago to give it, to share it, to make it a lasting entity, not for the ego part, but for gratitude.
and respect. That's where I sit here. That's what I feel.
Jeremy (27:20.946)
Yeah, definitely more exciting. It changes like some of you have already said. It's a different type of excitement. It's the one place, well there's a few others, but basically the one place I can go no matter what time of day I go in, no matter what class is going on, someone's going to smile at you and say, was your day? Everybody is just so kind and everybody is helpful to each other. So my excitement is still
the workout but it's also sharing it and as we get older and more advanced people are looking up to us and to be able to be a role model for younger and less experienced students makes it exciting. More exciting for me when I started 49 years ago I had two senseis Michael and Warren and Chaley and they were second degree black belt and they were
with the talk. And so I started out as a student and then I advanced to a Sensei. Now I'm a dojo owner and I want to be the best that I can be and I have great examples like Sensei Durkin of how good I can be. Not only that but...
I would like to pass it on. sensei is one who has gone before and is passing it on to the next generation. My son and my daughter -in -law study at my karate school and now my...
five year old granddaughter is studying at my karate school and I'm waiting for the two year old to get old enough to take over the school. it is more exciting for me.
Jeremy (29:16.048)
to all of you. Thank you.