Guam Aikikai
E-News
February, 2012 (No.2)
Guam Aikikai home
page renewed
Guam Aikikai Home
Page has been renewed.
Please refresh it often to
see the updated
information and
announcements.
www.guamaikikai.org
About O’sensei
Morihei Ueshiba
Morihei was on a
spiritual quest and was
transformed by three
visions….
The third vision was in
1942, during the worst of
the fighting of World
War II and in one of the
darkest periods of human
history. Morihei had a
vision of the Great Spirit
of Peace, a path that
could lead to the
elimination of all strife
and the reconciliation of
humankind. “The Way
of the Warrior has been
misunderstood as a
means to kill and destroy
others. Those who seek
competition are making a
grave mistake. To smash,
injure, or destroy is the
worst sin a human being
can commit. The real
Way of a warrior is to
prevent slaughter-it is the
Art of Peace, the power
of love.”
Morihei secluded himself
in the country and
devoted every minute of
his life thereafter to
refining and spreading
Aikido, the Art of Peace.
(quoted from the
translation of John
Stevens “The Art of
Peace”)
Minegishi’s 40th
Anniversary in
Aikido
International
Seminar on Guam
September 28-30, 2012
Venue: International
Sports Center in Hagatna
Celebration Dinner:
Sept.29（Sat）Mariott
Hotel
1
Dinner with Guests:
(adult only): Sept. 30
（Sunday）
Details will be announced
on the Guam Aikikai
Home Page. Please check
often to obtain the
necessary information.
Three Japanese
instructors are confirmed
to come. Some students
from Russia, Croatia,
Hong Kong, Taiwan,
Philippines, South Africa,
etc. have promised to join
us. We, the locals, have
to prepare ourselves to
extend our heartfelt
welcome to our guests.
I thank you in advance
for your support and
cooperation.
Second Dojo starts
on March 5 (M), 2012
International Sports
Center has opened in
Hagatna next to KFC.
Aikido classes will start
on Monday, March 5,
2012. Class schedule will
be as follows:
Children:
MWF 6:00-7:00PM
Adults:
MWF: 7:15-8:30PM
International Sports
Center, LLC
484 W. Soledad Ave.
Hagatna, GU 96910
477-9885
Diane Bachelder
diane@iscguam.com
Promotions in
februrary
Half Yellow: 2/4
Makenzie Burgess
Logan Dana
Hayden Dana
Keoni Ramiro
Adam Burgess
Noah Burgess
Kenny started Aikido in
1999 when Guam Aikikai
was first established.
During the last 13 years, he
was on and off from
practice because of his
education, family and
profession, etc. Now, he is
back to regular practice
with his son Kai. Both are
seriously practicing now,
and get steady promotions.
3 kyu
2/14 Ryan Harrison
2 kyu
2/5 Kenny Rekdahl
2
Ryan came to Guam
from Colorado only to
study Aikido seriously.
He is a pilot of the
Continental Airlines.
Shodan
2/19 Aaron Carbullido
for almost three years since
he had been promoted to a
half black belt. During the
last 10 years with us, he has
grown from a small boy to a
great young man.
Half Orange
2/15 Yamato Meguro
Alexandra Cho
4 kyu
2/16 Kristine Bagtad
More black belts
from the youth
How happy I feel when I
see some youth coming
up to the age to challenge
for a black belt.
There is a rule set by the
Hombu Dojo that a black
belt has to be 15 or older.
Many of our youth have
to wait until they come to
the age after having
obtained a half black belt.
Aaron started in 2002.
He had to wait for this day
3
Shosenji Dojo,
Shimamoto sensei,
50th anniversary
seminar with Doshu
September 9 (Sunday)
Internatinal Aikido
New Members
Christofer Brooks
Jerry Brooks
Federation Seminar
Guests
in Tokyo,
September 17-22, 2012
at Tokyo Olympic Center
to Guam Aikikai
Mr. Hamada, 4dan, from
Osaka
Hombu Dojo 80th
anniversary party
September 23(S),
in Tokyo
Minegishi’s AnnuAl
tour to Europe in
Spring, 2012
What kind of a student
was I? How have I been
trained and by whom?
These are some questions
that I have been asked.
From this month, I would
like to share my 40 years
of experiences including
my teachers.
If you are interested in
joining any part of the
tour, please let me know.
March 10, Saturday from
10-4 at Nikko Hotel
Aikido Demonstrations
and a booth
Small children:
11:30-11:50
Older children:
2:40-3:00
He was one of my
students when I was in
Kiribati 20 years ago. He
was a high school student
then, but now he is
working at the University
in Phonape. He is a
shodan from New
Zealand. He said that he
wanted to restart
practice after having
practiced with us.
My teachers
April 20-22: Holland
April 23-28: Monaco
April 29-May 12: Croatia
May 13-20: Russia
(International seminar in
Russia from May 16-20.)
Art & Crafts Fair
Mr. Tetaake Yeeting
from Phonape
Mr. Hamada practiced
with us on Saturday and
Sunday in four classes.
He was deeply impressed
with our children’s
cheerfulness and high
level of techniques
especially small
children’s enthusiasm
and good behavior
surprised him.
4
I have learned Aikido
from many, many
teachers. Many of them
have already passed
away, but all of them
gave me valuable lessons.
I would like to introduce
some of them to you one
by one with my sweet and
sour memories.
Watanabe Nobuyuki
Sensei
As I recall my training
days at Hombu Dojo, I
cannot single out any
teacher as my favorite.
All of them were unique
and they had already
developed their own
styles. Sometimes it was
hard for me to believe
that they were all
students of O’sensei. I
thought that the
O’sensei’s Aikido was all
combined of everything
that every teacher taught
me.
Nobuyuki Watanabe
sensei was my first
teacher. I called
him ”golden hips” and he
called me “a fire ball
sister”. I was only 32
years old when I first
started Aikido, and I was
surely “a fire ball”. I
took classes from him on
Saturdays, Sundays and
also three classes per
week at the Aikido
School for two terms of 6
months each. His
influence on me was very
strong because it was my
initial stage of learning. I
learned from him how to
use the hips rather than
using the upper half of
my body.
After having learned
from him for two years, I
obtained a shodan and
went to USA. During the
summer holidays, for
three months, I came
back to Hombu Dojo to
prepare for my 2dan. I
spent three months, every
single day, even without
going home to see my
family, and I just
concentrated on practice.
However, Watanabe
sensei did not give me
any sign of promoting me.
On the last day of my
stay in Japan, with a big
disappointment, I did not
go to class. That must
have upset him, and he
did not promote me
without a word.
Furthermore, he
completely stopped
communicating with me
thereafter. I was deeply
saddened, and learned
that my lack of respect to
him on the last day
destroyed such a close
trust with each other. I
am sure that he was
ready to promote me on
the very last day that I
missed. From this
incident, I learned that
the very last day would
be the most important
day. I could not recover
5
from this shock for the
next five years when I
finally took the test for
the 2nd dan in the USA.
Dreadful news from
South Africa
My best friend in South
Africa, Mr. Paul de Beer
(5th dan in Aikido), was
attacked by burglars at
the garage of his own
home.
On January 23, he came
home in his car, and
found out that the garage
door was open. As he
stepped out of his car,
two black men hit him on
the head (shiny skin
head) and shot him on his
right arm and bit him on
his left ring finger. He
went through three
operations, and now he is
recovering very well.
Thanks to his 40 years of
Aikido training, he made
a quick reaction to cover
his chest to be shot, but
his arm is badly damaged.
This is the house that he
had just moved from a
more dangerous
neighborhood, and he
said that it was a very
safe area. I stayed at his
house two times, and I
was really frightened to
hear about this news. I
sincerely hope that he
will recover quickly and
visit Guam for the 40th
anniversary event.
It was a second attack he
experienced in addition
to many times of brakeins in his house. Recently,
we do not hear happy
news about South
Africa.
Why do I like
children so much?
I do not remember any
happy days during my
childhood. Because of the
Second World War, our
family had to evacuate from
Tokyo and moved to our
father’s farming village. I
was hungry all the time,
and I had to help my
mother to grow vegetables,
to do all the errands on
an old bicycle to buy
from food to fire woods,
at times without any
money to pay. I had to
ask the shop owners to
wait for the payment
until the next payday.
We had to walk for more
than one hour one way to
go to bushes to get
kindling fire wood to
cook meals.
The school was 2.5 miles
away from home, and I
had to walk to school
without shoes because in
Japan, we did not have
enough shoes those days.
Now, at the dojo, I see
children playing happily
and practicing Aikido
with great enthusiasm to
get promotions. They
make friends and
challenge adults. Their
eyes are sparkling and
their cheerful laughter
echoes the dojo. I am
trying to identify myself
in any of them. I am
learning how to be a
child, and how to grow
through years of practice
at the dojo. Some started
at age 4 and they are now
in teens. Some started at
7 or 8, and they are
college students. They
have grown straight to
youth and adult. I envy
them so much that I keep
my interest in every one
of them to find myself. I
am learning how children
learn manners and
etiquettes, techniques
and disciplines at young
ages. I am learning how
to relate myself with
others. Children are
always giving me
valuable lessons in life.
Obituary
Yoji Fujimoto shihan
in Milan, Italy
6
Yoji Fujimoto sensei
passed away. He had
been suffering from
cancers. He was only in
his early 60’s.
Fujimoto sensei was sent
to Italy by O’sensei. He
was one of the most
active sensei’s in Europe
based in Milan, Italy.
He was promoted to the
8th dan last year.
I was with him in South
Africa, Croatia and Italy,
and I learned a lot from
him especially his sharp
and quick techniques
that came from his
gymnastics back ground.
Please join me in my
prayer for his families
and students.