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It's hard to believe, but Shinju Dojo is 25 years old! Gosh, most days I don't even feel that old myself - ha ha. We had a wonderful celebration last month at the fanciest restaurant in town and are very grateful to everyone who came to cheer us on. We have a wonderful dojo community and incredible friends we've made over the years. We wouldn't be able to do it without you! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for being such an important part of our lives! Have you ever wondered where the name Shinju Dojo comes from? You can read all about it here. You can read an interview about Heather's martial arts career here. You can read an interview about Roy's martial arts career here. Interested in learning more? Check out this link. 
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Our long-time friend and mentor, Nick Lowry was interviewed by Martial Arts Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow. Way to go, Nick! You can read part two of the article here.  Our long-time friend and mentor, Nick Lowry was interviewed by Martial Arts Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow. Way to go, Nick! You can read part one of the interview here.  Congratulations, Heather, on getting interviewed by Martial Arts of Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow! You can read the interesting article where Heather talks about her martial arts career here.  Congratulations, Roy, on getting interviewed by Martial Arts of Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow! You can read the interesting article where Roy talks about his martial arts career here.  I recently came across an interesting interview of David Witt talking about Karl Geis and how he became such a skilled martial artist. Roy and I attended many seminars with Karl over the years and he was the head of our organization until his death in 2014. The article can be read here. Enjoy!  Henry Copeland was a wonderful mentor and friend. He passed on March 6, 2023. His Obituary can be read here. You can read an article about him written by Pat Parker here. He was an incredible martial artist and loved by many. We all called him "Big Henry" not just because he was so tall, but also because he had a big heart and big presence in the room. He was an incredibly strong man and could be a brick wall when he wanted to be. But most of the time, he would throw you with such skill you never even felt the fall. One second you would be upright. The next you would be staring at the ceiling wondering how you got thrown to the floor. In one of my favorite tricks of his, he would start by placing his hands above my arms so that he was barely touching the arm hairs. I couldn't feel a thing. Then, we would step back and forth in sync. His timing was so incredible he would simply lift one hand and I would go flying through the air. It was amazing! One time during a seminar, there was a huge crowd of us all trying to sleep on the spring-loaded mat in Houston. Henry had to get up in the middle of the night. He was so large his steps shook the whole floor. Someone yelled, "Henry! We're trying to sleep!" Mid-step, Henry changed his walking and seemed to disappear. I watched him continue walking, but no one could feel him. It was incredible. I couldn't think of anyone else who could do that - much less such a large man! Roy and I started dating during a seminar. Henry was very protective of me and wasn't sure about this whole Roy thing. We could almost hear him rack an imaginary shotgun in Roy's direction, like a daddy on a front porch. (Roy survived and we're happily married. He can still see Henry watching over me to make sure he's keeping in line!) When I first met Henry, I thought speed, power, and precision were the keys to being a good martial artist. He corrected those mistakes and taught me the beauty of a light touch, patience, timing, and high level kazushi. He took me under his wing and was incredibly patient and never gave up on me. He was a quiet man and one of the smartest men I've ever met - and I grew up in a community with one of the highest rates of PhD per capita in the United States. I owe my martial arts career to him. Thank you, Henry for all the wonderful memories. You are deeply missed.
We were so excited to be featured in the local newspaper, The Daily News! We even made our picture on the front page. Can't get much better than that! To read the full article, click here: https://tdn.com/news/local/business/talking-business-shinju-dojo-brings-aikido-classes-to-the-ymca/article_56da402a-a421-11ed-b871-0738c2c77df6.html#tracking-source=home-top-story  Long time friend David Russell was interviewed recently on Martial Arts of Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow about his experiences learning aikido under Karl Geis. The interesting article can be read here: Interview with Longtime Karl Geis Student David Russell: His Time with Geis  Our friend and mentor Tim Larson was interviewed recently on Martial Arts of Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow about his experiences on how the Tomiki system of aikido evolved under Karl Geis. The interesting article can be read here: https://maytt.home.blog/2022/09/21/interview-with-kihara-aikido-instructor-timothy-larson-a-personal-look-at-karl-geis/  I came across this interview with Jimmie Villarreal, someone I spent mat hours with oh-so-many years ago at seminars hosted by Karl Geis. It's fun to see old friends in print. Way to go, Jimmie! I miss your smile and hope to see you again some day. https://maytt.home.blog/2022/08/24/interview-with-southwinds-aikido-founder-jimmie-villarreal-karl-geis-and-kihara-aikido/  I recently came across a very interesting website with downloadable copies of the first book on written by Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of aikido on his famous martial art. The book is called "Aikido Maki-no-Ichi." Even though it is written in Japanese, English speakers may find the illustrations interesting.
Check out the website here: https://www.aikidosangenkai.org/blog/aikido-maki-no-ichi-osensei-first-book/ A PDF version of the book itself can be downloaded here: https://www.aikidosangenkai.org/downloads/aikido-maki-no-ichi.pdf I recently came across a very interesting website with a downloadable copy of a book written by Kenji Tomiki, the founder of Tomiki-Ryu Aikido. The book is called, "Judo Taiso – a method of training Aiki no Jutsu through Judo principles," and was first published in 1933. While the book is written in Japanese and is no longer in circulation, the photos and illustrations are of interest universally.
The website with information about the book is: https://www.aikidosangenkai.org/blog/judo-taiso-aiki-no-jutsu-kenji-tomiki/ A PDF version of the book itself can be downloaded here: https://www.aikidosangenkai.org/downloads/judo-taiso-aiki-no-jutsu-kenji-tomiki.pdf Aikido Journal has a very interesting online article with an interview of Kenji Tomiki that explains some of the history of our style of Aidido. Please click here to read the article.
Aikido Journal has a very interesting online article with an interview of Kenji Tomiki that explains some of the history of our style of Aidido. Please click here to read the article.
We have a great, big, congratulations to our very own Jessica Hilliam for opening her own school at the community center on Granville Island in downtown Vancouver! Lucky Dog Dojo False Creek Community Centre 1318 Cartwright Street Granville Island (next to the water park) (604) 257-8195 Weekly classes on Saturdays from 1:30-3:00pm $125/6 sessions (first period starts Sep 16, next one is Oct 28) falsecreekcc.ca for more info and payment online when available (still showing Spring/Summer 2017 right now) Jess Hilliam, Sensei (604) 765-1230 She is doing fantastic and will be an excellent instructor! We highly encourage everyone to sign up with her! Now, for the sad news... As some of you already know, Denman Fitness is set to close their doors soon due to the hotel being closed and sold for condos. As a result, we will also be closing for the time being. Our last class will be on Thursday, August 31. But, we plan on joining Jess on her new adventures with Lucky Dog Dojo. Join us there! Please feel free to contact any of the three of us with any questions you may have.  Jess Hilliam way back when she was a green belt. What is different about our Aikido? by Heather Gawlick I've been pondering the question of who we are as Aikidoka. I've been asked a lot over the years who we are and how we fit in the Aikido world. It's a fair question. We aren't Aikikai, Ki Society, or pure Tomiki style. We don't belong to those groups. But, I don't believe we are on the fringes, either. Those of us who studied under the Karl Geis umbrella while he was alive became a part of a different group with its own merits. I learned before the Internet took off, so information about other Aikido dojos was limited and I really didn't know anything about what other styles there were. Now, thanks to YouTube and other resources, I'm starting to open my eyes and mind a bit more. The katas as I originally learned them look almost identical to what I see other Tomiki groups doing. It is very clear that is where we got our roots. Over the years since I started, we have slowed the techniques down, softened them, and rounded out the edges a bit. But, they are still clearly Tomiki techniques. One thing that is very different from the other Tomiki groups is we don't do the competitions they are famous for. Karl told me he objected to the competitions because when you are trying to score points, that becomes the focus and it changes things. Karl wanted to keep the self-defense aspects of our Aikido as the focus, which makes it too dangerous to do as a sport with competitions. When everything you do results in broken bones, no one is going to want to keep coming to class. Instead of competitions, Karl had us focus on randori, or free-style practice. The goal is to find the off-balance points and the places where one partner is in a terminal position. Randori done this way involves going so slowly the competition fades away and in its place is a focus on learning where your bodies can end up - spinal lock, arm bar, throw... It is practiced in the spirit of learning, playing, and safety - not winning. It is a tool for understanding that kata are your basic dance moves and they can be joined in an infinite number of combinations to make a full ballet. Later, Karl created a set of kata to take the basic moves and chain them together. I see it as a way to bridge the gap between the scripted set of moves that makes up a kata and the anarchy that is randori. Some teachers have replaced the Tomiki kata with these chains containing the old techniques. I like to use all three sets of tools. They each teach a different lesson as a student progresses in their understanding of Aikido. I think all the masters of Aikido have left their mark on this beautiful and graceful art, each one taking what Ueshiba invented and leaving a piece of themselves imbedded in their interpretation of how the body moves. Ueshiba passed his Aikido to Tomiki. Tomiki passed his Aikido to Karl Geis. Karl Geis passed his Aikido to me. I've picked up a few ideas of my own over the years and have passed them on to my students. I hope my students will pass their ideas on down to the next generation. When dealing with an art that involves movement of the body, there is no perfect technique. Each time it is executed, there is a little bit of a change. If there wasn't, it would be a dead art. Karl Geis has left quite a legacy for all of us who studied under him. I'll always be grateful to Karl and all my teachers over the years for everything they have taught me. I'm honored to walk in their footsteps. I'll do my best to pass the legacy and love we call Aikido on to others.  Where does the name Shinju Dojo come from? by Heather Gawlick Ah, yes. The famous question. Well, there's a story behind that... When I first opened the dojo, I lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was the day to go down and get my business license, but I still had not come up with a proper name for the school. I was competing with the Teenage Mutant Ninjas who actually had a school near me and I wanted something a little less boring than "Albuquerque Aikido," although that would have put me at the top of the Yellow Pages listing. So, back I went to my little used Japanese language traveler's dictionary. (This was 1999 and the Internet was just starting to take off. People still used paper books for reference.) I was looking for something like Zen, tranquility, peace... All I kept finding were words that were way too complicated for me to figure out how to pronounce or words that either sounded like Spanish, or had the same spelling. There are a lot of people living in Albuquerque who are very fluent in Spanish. I had to be careful about that. I was getting frustrated. Finally, I came across "shinju," meaning "pearl." Well, at least it wasn't offensive and met the criteria. I like pearls. Every girl does. So there it was. Pearl Dojo. I got my business license, set up the web site, printed business cards, got a location, and off I went on my merry little way. Until... One day, years later I was at one of my favorite hangouts - the used bookstore. In big, bold letters sat a book with the name "Shinju." Of course I had to read it. To my horror, I discovered a new meaning for the word shinju. Apparently, the Japanese use it to mean double suicide. Like Romeo and Juliette, but with more drama and a very negative connotation. Oh no! Could this be the reason I was having a hard time getting students?... Please tell me it isn't true! So, I started scouring the Internet hoping to find some new meaning. A-ha! There it was! I found kanji (Japanese characters) translating shinju to mean self-defense. I was rescued. Whew, that was close! New business cards were purchased. A new logo designed, featuring the kanji to make sure all Japanese people would know I didn't mean joining my dojo would require suicidal or homicidal acts. T-shirts were made up. One day at work, a lady stopped me in the hall and commented on my t-shirt with kanji. She said she was Japanese and thought it was "interesting." My heart stopped as I asked her to translate it for me. She said, "protect yourself." Whew! I finally had it right. I was all set to go. Until... Ten years or so later, another instructor was visiting from out of town. His wife is Japanese and teaches it to us dumb English speakers. Being a very nice lady, she politely asked why we would choose shinju as the name of our dojo. "Ummmmm... It means self-defense?..." She looked at me funny. "Ummmmm... I also heard it means pearl?..." "Ah, yes," she said. "That makes much more sense! You don't have the bar over the 'u.' Because, with the bar over the 'u,' it means..." "Yeah, I know. Double suicide." I told her the story and asked her about the self-defense kanji. As it turns out, that kanji doesn't mean self-defense in the martial arts sort of way, more like in a political/hostile sort of way. Not at all what I was hoping for. So, back to pearl we go. New logo has been set up. New web site configured. New business cards are on the way. My husband says maybe a new name in English would be simpler. I know he's right. (Yes, dear, I admitted you're right. In print. In public. Stop gloating already!) But, then we wouldn't have the funny story to go with our name. What can I say? It's grown on me and I'm not ready to give it up. A friend of ours reminded us that our pearl is the love we share for one another in the dojo and that is the real gem. He's right, too. Someday, maybe I can get my other friend to tell you about how his dojo got the name "Frog School..."  |
AuthorHeather and Roy Gawlick love Aikido and have a passion for sharing it with others. They hope you'll catch the Aikido bug, too! Archives
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YMCA of Southwest Washington - 766 - 15th Avenue, Longview, WA 98632
(360) 998 - 0749 - [email protected]
(360) 998 - 0749 - [email protected]
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