With the on-going covid chaos, things are still far from normalcy in many places. Even if things are slowly recovering and opening up in the less-hit areas, some would still prefer to minimize exposure out in the public. If one is stuck at home away from the dojo, what can one do?
One can consider doing self-practice on kihon (basics), with or without gear. Use the change of pace and location to slowly study a particular aspect of kihon. For example, how to do a better nukitsuke (tip: back straight, shoulders open), how to be able to stand up with back straight after not in seiza (tip: check with the seniors... =) ).
Personally, during the entire months at home, small kihon sessions like these offered a sanctuary - from the monotony, the doom & gloom. It also offers a retreat for self-reflection and gratitude; that at the very least, we have a safe place to practice, good health, and peace. The sudden change of environment also introduced interesting perspectives - of the need for finer control of the iaito (or one risks a missing light or two within a night, holes in the cabinet or mattress AND a very upset spouse), of the need to think about how to do nukitsuke differently in an enclosed space. The change of pace in way, broke the sort of routine mode of training, and from that one may review/ revisit/ refine certain kihon in isolation, then rework it back into the waza. So if anyone is stuck at home and want to train a bit, consider starting from kihon.
Understandably, long time away from dojo would also mean certain aspects of kihon would be rusty after a while, but hopefully these ideas should provide some fresh training ideas to make do with the time and space available. Hope to see everyone back in the dojo soon.
Til next time, stay safe, stay sane.