The Sensei passed away

Tamura Sensei has passed away. He won’t hold seminars, we won’t see him go slowly on the tatami, bowing towards the kamiza, sitting in seiza and looking at us with his twinkling eyes. We cannot wonder at his soundless ukemi, can’t see him becoming young again from the first technique, and how easily he executes the ikkyo on a much bigger and younger opponent.

We can’t feel his soft but peremptory technique, can’t see him working with children happily and full of patience and even let them to throw him of balance. We won’t see his smile, and he won’t sit at our table at the banquette and answer our silly questions. Now we feel the pain of every missed chance.

It is nearly incomprehensible for me where did he get his patience from towards us. Year by year, he came to us and tried to teach us all the thing we were looking for, but we can’t see it.

Tamura Sensei’s teaching method was interesting even for Japanese people, instead of rigour he used kindness. During his trainings the dojo was filled with cosiness.

Tamura Sensei is gone, but his teachings, principles, methods and values will not be, cannot be lost. We must carry-on with them. The Master has beaten a track for us. He was walking well ahead of his best students, but from time-to-time he came back for us, to lead us to the right direction to help us staying on the road.

The path remains, but we have to concentrate much harder to stay on it, because  Tamura Sensei will not come back to correct us. He left a piece of the puzzle in each of us and it is our task to solve it. We need togetherness for it. We need to find the values inside us which were given by him and we often need to recall them not to let them fade away as time goes by.

Wholeheartedly thank you for everything Sensei!

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