Alternative title: I Am Not Now, Nor Have I Ever Been a Member of the Bowers.
A friend, an anonymous warrior whom shall remain nameless, emailed me and another blogger about martial arts. And the subject turned to bowing. This is what I said:
I have absolutely nothing of worth to contribute to this conversation. I once bowed to the chef at Benihana; it went over well. He flipped me a shrimp in appreciation. And I stayed at a Holiday Inn last night.
In Krav Maga, you don’t bow*. I took six months of Kung Fu, from a Corpsman who was a black belt. And I remember bowing all together in tandem. To ourselves and the teacher.
I also took Shotokan Karate in Queens, New York when I lived out there. And I did not get far enough into it to really grasp exactly what we were doing. I was a bike messenger and did not need the extra pt as I was already riding my bike for 8 hours a day.
* Actually you bow at the end of Krav, but it is to signify a good class.
