Hi there.
My name is Andrew Dodd, and I have a prob...oh, wrong group.
[humour]
I live in Canada, where I always have. My parents are of scottish desent, which can include various elements of 'celtic', irish, pictish and scandanavian, to mention a few. I was always read to about the equal importance of mythology (spirituality), science (thought) and action (physicality) though tales like the Lord of the Rings, the sagas, scottish/Irish/Welsh tales, and the histories of our lineages.
I found that the value system I was developing in my early years parallelled buddhism, and so used that as a guideline for years, getting into esoteric buddhist martial arts, where I had an accident and broke my back.
I spent some time contemplating my life, healing myself and expanding my conceptual vision of what processes define life. I was able to relate all the tales of inspiration to my mental skills as symbolic conceptual references and to my physicality and then things got interesting, noticing parallels between different aspects of cultures, individuals, and all manner of groups and processes. My martial arts training expanded as did my teaching.
A knife to me was always either a kitchen tool or a a threat to be disarmed, and it wasn't until I started teaching children that I developed an understanding and appreciation of a knife as a pragmatic tool and symbol.
My first real knife I had made for me [Bark River Knife and Tool Evolution One]
I started asking a LOT of questions, and getting answers which inspired more questions, the aquisition of knowledge, and skill of action.
I started making my own wooden training tools for my class, and through one of these online forums, I met some people and went to a knifemaker's show.
Well, since then I've been inspired beyond my means to express.
I'm only now just starting to work with metal.
I look forward to the intelligent and awe-inspiring conversation here with people of greater and greater wisdom.
