Zen Mind, Beginner Mind

The martial arts have been an integral part of my life since childhood and have profoundly influenced my outlook on life and work. I started training judo with sensei Edo Zeẽn back in my hometown of Deventer in the Netherlands around age six and later added Japanese ju-jutsu. Sensei Edo taught me much, not just judo and ju-jutsu, but also about the budo spirit as a way of life, with a strong focus on respect, humility, and striving for continuous improvement. Unfortunately, I was forced to quit both martial arts as a teenager due to persistent knee issues.

Though I could no longer actively train, the mental and philosophical components of budo always stayed with me. The notion that as a teacher, you are not better, you are simply more experienced in a particular field, has always stayed with me. We were all white belts once, and we are all still learning.

In my late 30s, after receiving medical clearance, I resumed my martial arts journey. It quickly became clear to me that my body would not tolerate the heavy physical demands of judo or ju-jutsu. Instead, I chose to focus on karate and found my home with the Japan Karate Shoto Federation (JKS), with a strong focus on technical rigour, discipline, respect, and inclusivity. As soon as I was eligible, I became a World Karate Federation (WKF) licenced official, as Aotearoa New Zealand has a severe shortage of WKF qualified judges and referees for karate tournaments. In 2020, I decided to complete my "quartet" of martial arts, and started training aikido in addition to karate. Because aikido is very different in its approach to martial arts techniques that I was used to, it forced me to radically rethink my approach to martial arts. Aikido to me has been a continuous lesson in physics with its foci on balance, angles, momentum, and energy. It has tied my former field of academic study to my hobby. Aikido has been an exhilarating and exciting journey that deeply enriches my martial arts repertoire and testament to the idea that we are always beginners and always learning.

Martial arts for me are both a way to relax, focus, and realise that no matter where you are, you are still a student. The fact that you may have a 'higher' belt just means that you are further along in the journey. It does not make you a better person, just a more experienced one. I've found this attitude to be particularly helpful in my work. I don't claim that I know how to teach a discipline like for example theology. I don't know much about theology. I do know about teaching, so with my colleague's knowledge of theology, and my knowledge of teaching and learning, we can figure out how to do teaching and learning in theology. My colleague and I are in a partnership of equals, dependent on one another's knowledge to create something greater than both of us, and that neither of us can create on our own, for the benefit of the students.

Current grades / licences

Karate

  • JKS Sandan (3rd degree black belt)

  • JKS instructor level C

  • JKS examiner level C

  • JKS judge level C

  • WKF regional judge A (kata)

  • WKF regional referee A (kumite)

Aikido

  • 2nd Kyu (brown belt)

Judo

  • 1st Kyu (brown belt)

Ju-jutsu

  • 1st Kyu (brown belt)