Well, it was  bound to happen! Almost everyone in our area can see that there’s quite a bit of snow falling. As always, you can check our main web page, our facebook page, or call the dojo to verify if we’re able to open or not.

As a reminder (or new information to those who have recently joined us), we follow the Everett School District when it comes to closures. So if the Everett School District cancels school, we close as well. That’s the case for today–although based on the calls we’ve received from the other places my family was planning to go today, I don’t any closure is unexpected!

As a long-time practitioner of aikido, I find almost any opportunity to practice one point. The snow reminds me of a story my daughter likes to tell. A year or so ago, it got very icy out–no snow, just a lot of ice. Our driveway is short and steep; as my daughter and I stepped onto it to head to the bus stop, she slipped. I was holding her hand, and started to slip as well. Instead of falling, I held my balance and “surfed” my way down to the end of the driveway, all while holding her up. A demonstration of balance and centeredness? Or just plain luck? I think it was a combination of the two–thanks to my aikido training, I had the opportunity to get that kind of luck. The net result was the same–I got the chance to be my daughter’s hero.

Stay warm and safe everyone! And I encourage everyone to not only enjoy the snow, but use it as a way of using aikido principles in daily life!