Times
With much anticipation, the annual Aikido summer camp came and went. At camp, some people noted that, proportionately, there were fewer white belts than before. I wonder if it is because we are lacking new blood or that the cost of camp has priced young people out. What jumped out to my eyes, compared to before, was that there were more women students. Also, it was refreshing to see so many more women instructors on the teaching schedule. At our dojo, we are very proud of having a very healthy proportion of women in our membership. Among the six members of our dojo attended camp this year, there were three men, three women. A pretty even distribution. A quarter century ago, I attended summer camp for the first time. I was an excited and enthusiatic second kyu . It was a rite of passage for me. On the vast Aikido mat at Colgate College, there were hundreds of people. If that was not intimidating enough, these were mostly western men ...
