First Seminar - Mary Heiny Sensei

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[Shadowfax]

I have not posted a whole lot on my aikido journey on here but thought I would just share this latest.

I have been training now for about 2 months. Loving it more with each passing week, now that the initial pain and soreness and nerves have passed.

This past weekend our Dojo hosted a mini clinic with Sensei Mary Heiney. It was 2 two-hour sessions on Saturday which I figured I could manage to train at least one off them. I had so much fun with the first session I jumped right into the second as well after the lunch break. What an amazing teacher she is! I have really enjoyed the instruction I received from her over the past few classes. We were very fortunate to not only have the seminar but to have her with us teaching for two weeks or so. I know Sensie Garth Jones has taken many pictures which I am looking forward to seeing on the dojo website.

Of course having her with us means we have had many visitors from other dojos and I had the pleasure to train with quite a few of them. While I am still very new to aikido I have found that this week has really increased my appreciation and joy in this new hobby of mine and has only left me wanting more. As of tonight I have had 20+ hours of training. 9 of them in the past 5 days. :D I only wish I could train this much every week. I leave the dojo feeling so much more energized and just good than I have felt in many years.

I offer a public thank you to Sensei Heiny for coming to our little dojo and being such an inspiration. It has truly been a great pleasure to meet ,and learn from you.:)

[jennifer paige smith]

The first Aikido I saw was Mary Heiny conducting a workshop at the dojo where I had then just recently signed up for a beginners course (That was 20 years ago, my friends). She has been a frequent visitor and teacher in my area through the years and I have spent a lot of time on and off the mat with her. Indeed, an inspirational teacher and a good person, too.
Mary has a way of getting folks moving and getting them to connect their centers to their spirit's trajectory. I totally know why people love to train with her.
I still feel the excitement of training that the previous poster described . It is the hope of very teacher I've ever trained with, and now as an instructor in my own right it is my hope, that students keep that love alive in their training, that they stretch themselves and grow and grow and grow.
I'm sure Mary would be grateful to you for such a mirror!
Gambatte!