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Voice of the Fox
The Newsletter of the Martial Arts Training Service

I Made It?!
by Alex Jovanovic
Spring 1998

To celebrate the anniversary of MATS' uchi deshi program, Aaron Starr and I took the senseis and the other uchi deshi out to dinner. It was the second anniversary of the program as well as the completion of two very difficult years in the deshi program for Aaron and me.

As we finished our dinner, Maureen Sensei asked us, "So what are you guys going to do now?" Aaron had asked me the same question earlier, but before I answered him, I had to reflect on what the deshi program has done for me. As Aaron and I reminisced about our experiences in the program, I made my decision.

It was easy to start in the uchi deshi program, because I didn't really know what I was getting myself into. I doubt any of us did. For the first whole month a soreness lingered throughout my entire body, mostly due to the exercises that John and Maureen put us through, plus the daily practice and every kids' class, with only Friday and Sunday to rest. Both senseis did warn us that it wouldn't be easy, and it wasn't--physically or mentally. That was the break-in month.

From then on it was smooth sailing. My body wasn't sore anymore, and that damn hakama stopped getting in the way. My flexibility was better than I had ever thought possible. The endurance I developed was fantastic. My strength gradually increased. My throws and techniques became easier and faster to accomplish, and the lists of required techniques seemed as though they were second nature.

Near the end of my uchi deshi commitment, the time came for me to take my shodan test. I never had second thoughts or got nervous. I just did my thing, finished, passed, and kept on practicing.

John and Maureen started this program so they can develop future instructors. One of the things they emphasize is how important it is to be a good teacher. Teaching is an enormous responsibility, more than taking out the garbage or watering the plants. The kanji on the large wooden board on the wall of the dojo roughly translate as, "A shihan's (master teacher's) influence transcends three generations."

If a teacher is ignorant, sloppy, or misguided, the students will be as well. We are being trained to become instructors, not to be a dead branch of our noble martial lineage. Teaching is an enormous responsibility, more than taking out the garbage or watering the plants. That is why the deshi program is so grueling.

As difficult as it was, I can't imagine my life without the uchi deshi program. I now have qualities that I would never have received in a life without jujitsu and the program.

So when Sensei asked me, "What are you going to do now?" I said, "One more year," hoping that I'll improve even more.

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