Living in New England, winter weather can sometimes create disruptions in schedule. The last couple of weeks we have been hit by a record amount of snow and this has cancelled some of our regular training. But while it is a bummer to miss training together, it is also an opportunity. Of course it can be an opportunity to skip training all together and catch up on other things, spend some time at home, and relax, but of course that is not what I am talking about. One of the best things about our practice is that it does not require a lot of space, or a lot of equipment. A snow day is a good time to train at home alone. Figure out what you can do without the dojo, and without other people to help you along. You are in charge of your training anyway, so don’t not train just because the dojo is closed for the day.

When I was a bit younger on occasion we went out and trained in the snow. I will always remember the pink footprints from doing sanchin in the snow and getting little cuts on my feet from the thin layer of ice on top. Good memory, probably not the smartest training ever. But while you don’t need to head outside to train on a snow day you should take the opportunity and run your own training. If you are not doing that regularly, you are not really training our arts anyway!