Back in the early/mid Seventies, the height of Kung Fu fighting, I briefly contemplated joining an Aikido dojo- not from any desire to go about kicking shit outta people (an unlikely scenario no matter how well trained), but as a street wise, keep my ass in one piece, self defense shield. Aikido seemed just the ticket- kinda like the intellectual's martial art where smarts and quick, unforeseen moves overpowered and neutralized the over blown, over grown bullies that life inevitably throws one way...
I never did make the move, primarily because I full well realized that to get half way decent at it, you'd have to commit, practice and dedicate oneself as with anything else worthwhile- college, photography and a P/T job left little time, save for the requisite, age appropriate partying. Still, I've wondered to this day- would it have actually been worth it? Would I have been able to effectively neutralize the brute before me, or someone with a different martial art, skill set?
Seems sheer laziness can pay off! This guy was a certified, bona fide Aikido master, knew all the moves- in fact, he taught them at his very own dojo! And yet, he had nagging self doubts about his own real world confidence- not a good place to be as a martial arts sensei. And so, being true to oneself, he decided to find out; and long story short- his doubt was well placed. Even an intermediate MMA student could kick his ass in a NY minute! No Contest! Over a decade of hard core dedication and commitment, only to discover you were little more than a self delusioned fraud... Your religion was little more than a scam, a fraud, a cult!
But give the guy his props. Undaunted, he picked himself up, dusted himself off and started his journey anew...
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