Breaking it Down to Basics.

One night a week my squire brothers and I train with my knight.  His manifesto for this weeks practice is as follows:

This practice is focusing on developing and perfecting execution of a form for SCA armored skills (in the spirit of eastern martial arts). To accomplish this there must be some discussion or focus on execution of a single element of the form, or what we classically call working on technique.
I expect modifications, or evolution, as we go along. I am trying to build this in stages and hope to have each stage reach stability as we add more stages.

It should be obvious that I am basing my direction on my background and on my perceptions of areas where you collectively might benefit. While I want this to be collaborative, I do not want it to be argumentative, so I reserve the right to decide the direction.
To keep this focused on the form the only required equipment is sword and shield. You may wear some additional gear if you wish, but this is not an armored activity, as such. Other forms for other weapons are future development.
Finally this is not a cerebral endeavor, completed with an understanding of concept. It is about execution, and perfecting execution is not optional - there is no good enough. On the other side of the token, perfection is not a barrier to progression. My goal is to advance in developing new stages, while continually revisiting earlier stages. Your goal should be perfecting all stages.

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Deep in Thought

I took a weekend to myself.  A real shocker let me tell you, but it served a true and ready purpose.  I simply took the time to think.

Becoming a squire is a step to becoming a knight. It signifies the choice to begin the journey to knighthood by swearing fealty to a knight who will teach you, train you, and guide you on and off of the field. When I wear my squires belt, it represents my desire to become a knight.  It does not only carry my honor but the honor of my knight, my squire brothers, my lineage, and my kingdom.  It is mine and I am theirs.


When I look at my knight, I succeed
When I look at my brothers, I pull them up beside me
When I look at my lineage, I stand beside them
When I look at my kingdom, I fight with a fierce pride

 A view of some of the questions I asked myself and discussed with my knight later in the week.
 

"Do I want this? Do I actually want to be knighted?"
 "Can I represent my kingdom, can I represent my royalty, can I represent my self and my peers with honor?"
"Would I want squires of my own some day?"
"Can I teach other fighters?"
"Besides prowess what else can I offer? Skills? Community? Household?"
"Am I a part of the community? how can I integrate more? What can I offer?"
"What does this belt, my squires belt, mean to me?  What will having a white belt mean to me?"
"Do I want the responsibilities knighthood comes with?"

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