Article: Training to be Vulnerable by "The Grindstone"

Discuss the article, "Training to be Vulnerable" by "The Grindstone" here.

Article URL: http://www.aikiweb.com/columns/thegr...e/2006_07.html

Beautifully put. It's something I've had to try to overcome in my own training. Moreso now that I train with some beginners and fear that they're picking up some of my own old bad habits. Sensei has warned me multiple times that if you fight with a beginner they'll start off on the wrong foot and it gets hard to recover from that (paraphrase). I think you're spot on.

Tarik thank you SO much for this. Today I am facing the greatest challenge of my aikido career, and it is a completely Off-the Mat situation.I started looking at it this morning as a game of tug-of-war. What happens if you just Let Go of your end of the rope?
Relax
Let it in
Dont try to throw them
Don't try to counter
Get off my Position and I get off the Line
Let it go
So simple
So difficult
If I can get through this thing with any semblance of Grace, I will not be afraid of my 2nd kyu test, I will have passed it today. The rest is just technique.