Now I get it!

There's a technique in karate called "ashi-barai." You quickly sweep the opponent's foot with your own, using your lead foot, in order to take them off-balance. It's something I knew about easily a decade ago, but never really used much.

It was this really cool technique that other people might use on me (even if it didn't always work) but I never really felt like it was part of *my* arsenal. I could literally do it, but it didn't come naturally so I rarely tried.

So then here comes last week. I get there early before class and am goofing around with different techniques. I come up with an interesting combination that has ashi-barai in it and it "feels" good. So I ask a friend to react to it and bam, it works beautifully! I try it again during actual sparring later in the week (on someone else) and bam again. And again. I start "getting" this technique, understanding how it works with my body, with my sensibilities. I see opportunities for it everywhere now!

Yesterday our karate club had a beach workout. Sensei had us practicing a swiveling maneuver designed to teach evasion. Some of the newer/middle-ranked belts were having trouble with their coordination, turning one way and punching the other. Even when they were physically able to do it, it wasn't a natural nor easy motion. It's probably not even something they'll use much in the near future since it's going to require a lot of study. But someday, maybe one of them will have that same "eureka" experience that I did, figuring out how it works with their own body and in their own time.

There are a lot of techniques and advice we're given as we learn an art. Some things go over our heads at the time or come out awkward even when we're doing it right. Forcing a technique to be in your body is not often the best way to learn it; sometimes it needs to happen when it's ready.