how much do you follow what your teacher does?

[Pat]

i heard it described to me two ways- i liked both very much. this explains carrying on techniques or philosophies, etc... the whole ball of wax-

"there are stairs that reach way up the mountain. your teacher carries the big heavy bag of rice. eventually, he will not be able to carry it. then it is your job. you carry it until your student takes over for you."

"think or your teacher like a master blacksmith. he learned these techniques. if he dies and has not passed on his trade, all his knowledge will be lost forever. if you love the art, you will want to learn his secrets. that way, his secrets and techniques will be carried on for the next generation."

so i love the art. if i want to llearn blacksmithing, i will find a master smith. if i want to learn a form of painting, i will find a master of the style i want to learn.

i consider myself kind of like an apprentice.

Practice exactly as your teacher showed you, at least for awhile. A good teacher will take into account body differences. My teacher will show us how to do something, then a while later he will show us a different way to do the same thing. The earlier incarnations are like building blocks to get to the current one. A lot of times it is combining movements we did separately before, or changing a stance to a more difficult one, or adding a step, or turning your foot a little differently.

Exploration should happen all the time, for me it is my sparring. We will all have to figure out our own ways to get a movement to work....

i very much like this approach to teaching and learning.

[river rider]

The story I like is where, after a long and difficult journey across a wild and confusing landscape, the teacher is finally able to show you a Door. It will be up to you to open that door, and once on the other side the journey will be your own. To teach is to be able to show another the paths, landmarks, perils etc of this route to the Door. There might be others.