It's just the filipina blood, really.

We've had a lot of visitors in my kali and aikido classes lately; some have been friends of mine which is exciting since I've been inviting a couple of them for years. I think it's probably partly new year's resolution stuff--you know, get in shape, learn to punch. lol. Anyway, all these new people coming in has reminded me that a good chunk of the beginning days is spent learning to sit on the ground, especially in aikido. Part of the theory about why most new students have such a hard time sitting in seiza, a squat, or even cross-legged is that we're at desks all day and we pretty much always sit in a chair so we lose some of the flexibility in our Achilles tendons and thighs unless we really work on that kind of thing. I have another theory. Floor sitting is actually genetic:


I call this her Island Baby pose. For some reason I giggle whenever I see her sitting this way.