I’ve talked A LOT about LudoSport, and I’m entirely unapologetic about that.
LudoSport is one of the best places I’ve ever discovered – an amazing community, an incredible group of people, great exercise and my mental health has been always better since starting with them. I think the last major post I did about LudoSport, before I had issues in October was the excitement about being under 100kgs for the first time in years, and about to go do a daggers course.
I did the daggers course. I got sick soon after. So, if you’d like to know about the sport, this post isn’t really all about that – instead, it’s a little about the sport. The 2023 version of this post was more about the sport, but has less currently open Academies 😉
I wanted though, to just share a few things about what’s happened since October and my issues with memory and headache issues.
I haven’t really been at regular training, but every time I have managed to attend, if one of my trainers or Rectors have been in attendance (as David is now teaching at Cheltenham), they run through things with me, and watch what I’m doing. I don’t rememeber much about training, I’ll be honest, but I did get scraps. My diaries – and the people – helped. J – a very good friend was one of the first to reach out to me, and meet up. She told me it was all ok, I could get to know people all over again, as they already knew and adored me. And…she was right.
I’m part of several amazingly vast communities – Ludosport is global. The weekend before this post, I was around one of my favorite Rectors and a group of incredible people that were learning to instruct in form 1, while we were taking part in advanced Form 1. A weekend of antics for me, and lots of new friends, it was A LOT of fun.
The thing is, because I don’t remember the two years of trust and … just trust I’ve built with all of them, I think it’s been hard to talk to me, because I’m not relating to them the way I used to. I don’t understand why they’re proud of me, but I’ve got my diaries. In this last year, I was, apparently, nominated ‘Best Iniziata’ – the ‘best’ of my rank in the UK – not for competitions, but instead, voted by my peers. Probably because of being helpful. I’m not sure what I actually did and was, apparently, kinda stunned, though, they warned me in advance so I didn’t run when they announced it 😉
I helped get the Academy at Cheltenham up and running, with my other half, the Rector and the rest of the local to us LudoSport community, and last week, was made the Lead Lorekeeper (social media/advertising) for Cheltenham. I passed Form 2. Add that to the year before being promoted to Iniziata, and passing Form 1, competing once, and helping all over the fricking place, it’s neither wonder that when everything happened in October my life felt…emptier. I couldn’t explain what I was missing, but I was greiving it none the less.
I get to start back at Course Y, and continue advancing my training, sometime in the summer. And I’ve laughed more lately – something which I’ve had one of the people I was close to before this happened, says they really, really missed.
And I’m back to helping. It was, I guess, the first thing to come back. Because I can’t – and won’t – give in on the community. They didn’t give in on me.
This image is up to date, as of the end of December 2023.
I know that Canada, South Ontario has opened just after this image was made. I was training with people from Hampshire and Hereford and Essex and Coventry and Birmingham this last weekend. And I know they’re fundraising for the first LudoSport Japan Academy – which is going to be such an incredible project. So, more are opening as we go, and you can train as an instructor, learn the first form, and then…join the community.
I promise it’s worth it. I don’t need to remember – it’s something I know in my bones. And, if nothing else, the stupid nonsense I was doing one handed with a broadsword has definitely been rethought for one of my books 😉
Myself and the Prophet (lead Lorekeeper) from Birmingham, another K, is discussing, idly, whether for 2025, we could do an AtoZ of Ludosport. I’m currently thinking happy thoughts about the images we can use, but I’m not sure of what we’d actually cover. It’s a maybe for next year. A possibly, maybe….errr…maybe 😉
I shared a photo of me, taken by Artenapan, earlier in the week, but this is me in my uniform now. That’s me with my beloved Petrichor, in my black sub-tunic. Proud, happy and exhausted after a weekend of fun.
Kai is a writer, author and avid reader. A mental health advocate, Ludosport athlete and coder. She’s the mother of two young adults, owned by two cats, and lives with her beloved in the Cotswolds.
