The New Guy

Last night was a very small class - times two. Between schedules and the overly hot weather (and the inadequate AC where I teach), much of my usual crowd took the week off. I don't mind a small class. Since it was so hot, we took it slow, and I was able to answer beginners' questions and demonstrate things that I often leave to the more senior students in the group (because *none* of the seniors were there! Ah, summer!)

We had a new student in the jodo class. I had seen the email from my sponsor warning me he was coming, but honestly, between the weather and my work schedule, I had entirely forgotten about him. He already had keikogi, hakama, and a jo, so I figured he had some past experience. Naturally, before we got started I asked him who his teacher was. He mentioned an American whose name I sort of recognized, but did not know personally, and mentioned (a) it had been years since he had practiced, and (b) he doubted the American was still teaching jodo anyway. Fine.

He had done seitei and the Koryu Omote, he said. This gentleman's kihon was a little rusty, though clearly, he had trained. He did some techniques in a decidedly Kendo Fed Jodo way. I am not being critical; but there are some differences in the kihon, which one notices. No matter. His hikiotoshi uchi was also rusty, and he tried to make up in power what he lacked in finesse. His feet were mostly incorrect; i.e., he had real trouble advancing with feet pointing straight ahead, and turned his back foot constantly (a normal condition for most people that can be corrected with some vigilant practice).

So it was me, the New Guy, and another relatively new student - a retired karateka who likes jodo and wants to stay active. It has taken him a long time to manage the rudiments of the kihon. By his own admission, it takes him a long time to understand basics. But after months of repetition, he is now getting somewhere, and he is finally beginning to follow along for the Omote kata.

The new guy picked up the Omote kata after seeing it, so clearly, he had some experience. We went at my other student's pace which was pretty slow, and given the heat, it seemed to suit everyone well enough. Except for one thing - the new guy could not stop offering corrections to my other student. Seeing as how there were only three of us, and we were all working together, his interjections were unwarranted and unwelcome. In addition, when I pointed out that his feet were misaligned, he said it was because of some other art form that he studied, as though that was a good enough explanation for poor footwork. So he felt free to offer corrections but made excuses for what he could not do himself.

One of the universals of being a female budo teacher is having some guy who hardly knows you come into your class and tell you what to do. If I had been a man, I could have told people to do cartwheels as part of the beginning of the kata, and he would have complied, in all likelihood. Even if he thought such a thing was strange, and that he might not care to come back, he would have gone through the class without comment.

I'm not the only one. Years ago, I had a grad school colleague who taught the rare Indian martial art form of Kalaripayatu. She lived in India for several years and found a guru who had only daughters, so he taught them, and her. Once she returned to the States, she set up classes. But she told me she had trouble keeping male students. Inevitably, after training with her for about four months, the guys would start telling her how to "better" run the class. She would kick them out.

It's possible the New Guy was just nervous. I know from walking into a new place for the first time that I sweat right through my underwear; however, I tend to say nothing and just try to pay attention to what's going on. The last thing I would do is correct students in front of a teacher. But, as I said, it's not the first time.

At the end of practice, my other student asked for advice on how to fold his new hakama. I showed him a unique travel fold I learned from a woman who did naginata. For once, the New Guy said nothing. "See?" my other student said to him, "She just showed you something you didn't already know." Sarcasm works.

I generally have a good group. People who don't want to be taught by a woman don't stick around, which suits me just fine. So this guy has two choices. He can come back, and shut up; or he can stop coming to class. We'll see which way it works out.