I don't know about you, but skipping class freaks me out. Here is
why:
My friends and partners, whose Jiu jitsu I want to encourage and
foster, whom I care about as human beings, whom I love dearly and spar with
only to improve their Jiu jitsu and NEVER for any egotistical reasons (I am
much more Zen than that), if I miss a class, those wonderful people will
totally get a leg up on me with some new move or extra practice. Then they will
wreck me mercilessly the next time I am on the mat.
I also hate missing class because mat sense is real. I have been
sidelined by inuries, keeping me off the mat for months. When I came back, it
felt like that blue mat was water and I was floundering to stay afloat. It
takes a while to get used to the mat after an absence. Like walkng on land
after being at sea. Any time I miss mat time, I worry that my mat sense will
diminish.
Here is a Short List of things I have done instead of missing
class:
Skip Eating
I love food, just not when it is within an hour of Jiu jitsu class.
Dinner will have to wait until I come back. Speaking of food . . .
Not Feed My Children Dinner
Look, there is cereal in the pantry, and they are old enough to
understand the beauty and ease of ramen noodles. I am confident their instincts
will kick in and they will not become some Darwinian statistic. In the
meantime, I got me some learnin’ to do.
Laundry On the Off Day
SG has so much laundry. Sometimes I feel like Sisyphus rolling
that big rock up a hill. Instead my rock is a laundry basket, the hill is the
basement stairs, and when it all rolls back down it goes through a laundry
chute that wouldn't exist anymore if I had my house renovated because it is
against fire code and no self respecting contractor who wants to keep his
license is keeping that shit around.
But no matter how much
laundry I have done, no matter how tired I am of my basement corner with the
dryer sheets and the Arm and Hammer and the big bins of sorted, sweaty,
elementary-school–boy laundry, I will get my ass downstairs and make sure I
have clean Jiu jitsu gear for my classes. Period. My son doesn't need clean
underwear or socks, really. Half the time he wears them for days straight of
his own preference. But I need a clean gi.
Take Maximum Ibuprofen.
Whether I feel a migraine coming on, or my muscles are sore from
running, it doesn't matter. I will pop this wonder drug like candy if It means
being able to make it through jujitsu class.
Take Other Pharmaceuticals
. . . especially those
quelling any gas that might erupt, embarrassing myself and my classmates. Yes I
am saying that sometimes (maybe very often) I take a Gas-X about a half hour
before class, what's it to ya’? Actually you should all be thanking me. I do it
out of consideration for my classmates.
Show Up Places in My Gi
Yes, I have appeared at school events in full gi in front of
parents and students because I didn't have time to change after class. I have
gone to the grocery store flaunting patches and a belt. I know my schedule is
tight, but that doesn't mean I should have to sacrifice choking someone I care
about.
 |
| Looks like I will have to wait until 2018 to be friends with Jason. 😢 |
And finally,
Fight With Husband
I don't care what he has scheduled, Jiu jitsu is sacred time. He
best not get in the way! (I’m pretty sure I can take him!)
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