A category for op/ed pieces on HEMA topics.
Yet again, the HEMA community had a Nazi panic attack this week. A topic from a white supremacy forum revealed that plenty of its denizens have an interest in our hobby; some practice it, others maybe even teach it. That … Continue reading Are Nazis invading HEMA? Not really
One of the things I have learned about confidence is when you fake it long enough, you can actually bring out the real thing with a bit of effort. While there was plenty of babbling, many details I want to … Continue reading Teaching a first workshop – how it went & full video
Recently, I have noticed that more and more people with miniscule or complete lack of experience in HEMA partake most loudly and actively in online discussions. One could say that this is a typical characteristic of online discussion – the … Continue reading Authority in HEMA
Last week, I told you all about a first for me – teaching a small workshop at a small event outside of my school. The plan in the meantime was to do some testing with the planned lesson. Teaching a … Continue reading Teaching a workshop for the first time – testing and last touches
It starts so simple – you see someone twisting their wrist like a pretzel or their feet pointing towards the “enemy” three rows from them, you go and correct them, and a decade later you are an assistant-instructor and you … Continue reading Teaching a workshop for the first time: Planning
What is the goal? That is it. That is the question. Let me explain why it is so useful. HEMA is a term that encompasses a vast array of different activities. You can define them by era, weapon, tradition. That … Continue reading HEMA can be defined by answering one question
Many people practice HEMA as a casual hobby or a sport and they are in many ways lucky – they can enjoy the training and the tourneys and have fun. But if and when you get more serious in HEMA, … Continue reading Where the real fight is
There is a strange phenomenon in HEMA – one of the weapon combinations that brings out the most fascination is largely ignored in practice by the majority of serious practitioners. Anytime someone presents HEMA, you will hear about the oldest … Continue reading Sword and buckler and why I do it
There is a richness in European sources you can’t find anywhere else. “HEMA” encompasses an enormous amount of different weapons and disciplines, spanning over 5-6 centuries, depending on how you count it. Yet only a few of them are at … Continue reading The need to be special in HEMA
