By Juri Mathiesen, Member until 2010
In February / March 2004 we received a note in the mailbox regarding family karate in Jokokan Amager. My wife suggested that the boy and I should join, so to speak, to have a "man thing" together.
I thought it was a good idea for the boy to start going to karate - I myself went to karate in the 70s and was very enthusiastic about it - but probably thought that with my 42 years and my totally broken back and my equally broken knee I wouldn't would be able to participate.
Nevertheless, I set off with the kid, with training clothes for both of us, with high expectations that the kid would be taken by it, and with just as much skepticism as to whether my old carcass would be able to cope with the "hardships".
Now here, December 2004, I can see that the boy has been just as taken by it as I expected, and my old carcass can actually keep up, more or less.
If I compare the training methods with those I was exposed to in the 70s and those our instructor uses today, I must say there is a huge difference.
Family karate is exactly the word that covers Shindenkan, a training method where everyone can participate, but where you can learn a hell of a lot if you want to. Everyone can participate, and our Shihan (chief instructor) is good at explaining if you ask about things.
Shindenkan also emphasizes the social side, there must be time for smiles and a bit of "fuss", albeit with due respect for the dojo rules.
At one practice, right after two teams had been merged, all the adults stood and talked together in the dojo, and all the kids ran out the back, in the tool room, and played really well together, completely forgetting time and place. So when the training class started, we adults just started warming up. And when the kids found out 5-10 minutes later that we were starting, they came rushing into the dojo. Of course, the children had to receive their "prize", but they did so with a good mood and a slightly strained smile on their lips. It bodes very well for the unity in Jokokan Amager, and in my eyes is a sign of health, and probably also an indication that Jokokan Amager is here to stay.
During the time we have been in Jokokan, we have participated in two training sessions, summer camp and Christmas training. Both events were top notch and very profitable. It is great to meet other departments within Jokokan and have a chat with other Jokokaners.
The two training sessions have both been built around a rotation system, where you have trained different things, with different instructors. This is a fantastic idea, as you then get to see and explain the things you train on a daily basis in a different way.
This is not a criticism of the daily instructors, but things can be clarified in this way when viewed from a different angle.
Again, I would like to highlight the social aspect, especially from the Christmas training, where most of the children from across departments enjoyed themselves together in the dojo, while we adults enjoyed ourselves equally in the restaurant.
As I said – a year has almost passed as a member of Jokokan Amager, and we are looking forward to the coming year. I have to admit that my own skepticism has blown the whistle, and I look forward to the upcoming challenges - Jokokan has become a way of life, and I want Jokokan.
A big thank you with wishes for a happy new year must go to my daily instructor Shihan Søren Nielsen and the rest of Shindenkan Denmark.
