As the Midwest Academy continues to grow, certain tasks
that we used to preform “in-house” we have now opted to “out-source”. The ultimate
reason for “out-sourcing” these tasks is to ensure that we are optimizing
our time for the educational and training benefit of our students.
One task that we have recently “out-sourced” has been the
distribution of Midwest Academy soft goods (clothing). All clothing items will
now be available through an online “store” that is accessible through the Academy’s home page. As opposed to the Academy storing and distributing gear, you will now order items directly from the printing/embroidery company. Those items will then be sent directly to your shipping address.
In addition, the Academy’s Leadership Development Group hoped to use this opportunity to briefly explain some of the logos used on our soft good to people unfamiliar with them:
Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters that
are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana and
katakana. Just like written English has various “scripts” (block
writing/printing, cursive, etc.), kanji also has various “scripts”. The kanji
that appears on Midwest Academy soft goods is a "cursive" script and reads as Seizan Ryu or “West
Mountain School”. “West Mountain” is a historical reference to the origin and
foundation of the primary Art that is taught and practiced at the Academy. A
more detailed explanation is available in our student manual.
The term Ryu refers to “school” - not in the sense
of a particular structure, but rather a philosophical root which governs the
overall learning, practice, and teaching principles and methods utilized by “West
Mountain”.
Mon or the crest is not unlike the Coat-of-Arms that once was prevalent and used by most Western families up until recent modern times. The Mon
is seal script derived from the kanji for “West Mountain”; this seal is essentially
the system’s “coat-of-arms”. It is sometimes referred to by Seizan Ryu practitioners
as the “grinning cougar” due to its similarity in appearance to the face of a
feline.
The “Combat Flag” or “reversed US Flag”, when used, appears only on the right
shoulder of some of Midwest Academy’s gear. It
Sho-Chiku-Bai or Pine-Bamboo-Plum is a 3 circle motif on some of Midwest Academy’s gear. This motif appears in traditional Japanese culture and is referred to as Three Friends
of Winter; each item is representative of strength, flexibility, and endurance respectively, individually, and collectively. The meanings are connoted as these plants are able to survive the adversity
of winter due to their intrinsic attributes. The Academy uses the motif as we believe the
greatest personal growth and leadership attributes often develop in the face of adversity.
LDG Triangle (see ordering website for logo depiction) – The Leadership Development Group (LDG) is a
subset of the Academy’s teacher cadre that specifically focuses on optimizing
opportunities for the personal development and growth of our students
throughout the course of their training. The triangle is symbolic
of interdependent strength as each side requires the others to keep its shape.
It also represents a compass needle pointing “north”; indicative of the
personal code and integrity we expect from our students and ourselves. The number in the center of the triangle is indicative of how many years the Midwest Academy has operated at its current location. This run will feature the number "10".
For more information on classes or to schedule a visit to the Academy, visit www.TheMidwestAcademy.com or call
(630) 836-3600.
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