The year is 2001. Dobroslav and I had been leading our club for almost 10 years when we heard that the biggest dojo in Europe is about to open in Florence. So I went there and met Beppe. He was the kind, smiley, pleasant personality that he remained during all these years that we have known him.
After meeting him during years in Firence, st. Michelle in Toscana, Budapest and Velebit, in 2008 Dobroslav and I decided to invite him to hold a seminar in Zagreb. Back then we didn’t have our own dojo; trainings were held at the College of Kinesiology. The response to Beppe’s teaching was amazing and he continued to visit us every year – 2014 was the first seminar he held in our own dojo, the House of Aikido. That is also the place where he held his last one.
Reminiscing about the past with this great teacher I can’t help but think how amazing it is to have one person with such great impact on so many people. His teaching, his kind words, his aikido, they are all built into each and every one of us that listened to him speak at seminars. Every thought and idea about aikido and life remained and can never be lost.
There was a special atmosphere about Beppe. Even without speaking you could feel at ease with him. You could feel his ease and harmony with life. That is because he was truly living the aikido he was teaching. That is why it is easy to understand and feel what he was saying about aikido during video recording of a seminar in Bale, Croatia, 2013:
“The feeling I have in aikido is love and peace for everybody, and I think we can communicate this without talking, just feeling. When the feeling is really deep, people change and can give this to other people. Of course this could look a bit naive, but I believe.”
We believe and we will keep on believing, continuing his journey, thankful, honoured by his presence and his knowledge. Happy, not sad. Smiling, for we have not lost anything with his departure. We have gained the greatest gift and will keep it in our hearts.
Some memories of Beppe sensei during all the years at his seminars:
