We started our after-school classes at Duniway Elementary this week, through their "cool school" program. The group was small - 13 kids, but everyone was excited to be there and ready to plow ahead into the basic requirements. They got through a good chunk of basics - vertical punch, elbow smash, knee kick, tiger stance, horse stance and the beginning of sui-wan.

It always surprises me how much kids dig forms. Lara insists it's because I love doing forms and that the students pick up on that. That may be so, but I think it's more than that. There's something cool about finally learning the end of a form and feeling like you really own it - you earned it.

Impressively, even when students see how long sui-wan is, they still want to see if they can get all the way through - in fact, the length seems to inspire them. It's good to be reminded that people want to be challenged.

- Wally.