A Shift

Tuesday morning arrived with a quiet sense of counting days. Just a few more sessions before I head off to see RiRi. That thought alone feels like a small pocket of light.

Lately, I’ve felt ready for a change. Nothing dramatic is wrong here, but something has felt slightly off. Training continues to progress, yet my smile has been thinner, my energy lower, my outlook a little clouded. The school hasn’t changed. Which suggests that I have.

For the next few days, it feels important to look for peace inside the training itself. To enjoy the moments as they appear, rather than waiting for something else to arrive.

I’ve begun the basics for a new form — staff. I have a feeling I’m going to enjoy it. It will take time, as they all do, but time is something I have right now. That alone feels like an invitation to slow down and let the learning unfold naturally.

Morning training surprised me. It was genuinely good. The difference was simple: space. Enough room to move without interruption. Such a small thing, yet it changes everything. It was reassuring to feel that quiet confirmation — that what I’ve been sensing isn’t imagined.

I carried that lightness into the evening. The sword began to feel less confrontational, more cooperative. After five weeks, things are starting to link together. When I consider how long some of the other forms took, this feels almost reasonable.

It still amazes me how quickly the mind can turn, and how deeply that shift ripples into the emotions. Somewhere along the way today, something loosened. I don’t know exactly what changed — only that it did.

The evening session was genuinely enjoyable. Fun, even. By the end of it, I was smiling without feeling drained. That alone makes today stand out as the best I’ve had since returning.

Maybe it’s progress.
Maybe it’s softness.
Maybe it’s anticipation.

Whatever it is, it feels good to let it be.

A good day, all round.