à la carte spirit by ilona fried
Aikido
What’s Scarier than Public Speaking? An Aikido Rank Test
It’s a truism that many people fear public speaking more than death. I can safely say that an Aikido rank test is more terrifying than addressing a group of people. When I began practicing Aikido in early 2017, I sought an intense physical and spiritual challenge to lift me out of a dark place. I … Continue reading
Returning to El Camino at an Aikido Camp
As an à la carte spirit, I have an aversion to package deals. I’d rather do my own selecting, thank you. Yet I recently had to put my à la carte attitude aside to attend an Aikido “summer camp” in Montreal, taught by master Christian Tissier. The venue, a private college, didn’t excite me, although the photograph of … Continue reading
Am I “Turning Japanese”?
A thought recently hit me over the head: many of the things I do, practice and love are Japanese. These include the Konmari method of decluttering with its emphasis on simplicity and joy, my practice of Zen meditation, my ongoing lust for sushi, my habit of drinking green tea and, most importantly, my recent foray into Aikido. The thought … Continue reading
Bringing Passover Consciousness to a Dojo and Finding More Freedom
Perhaps the desire to turn everything inside out and upside down, like religious Jews who remove every last crumb of hametz before Passover, is in my DNA. The impulse still arises even though, as an adult, I have never followed Jewish law impeccably around any holiday. Having wandered from Jewish observance, preferring to focus on essence rather than form, I wasn’t sure … Continue reading
à la carte spirit by ilona fried 
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