The reason I started Aikido: I was fired in 2003 before X-mas.
Dec 2003:
I'm a mechanical engineer in the process of precision mass production of the old types of beam televisions.
I really loved my job, but when the LED television was introduced, and the production of the conventional televisions ended. In January of 2004 I was not a working Mum anymore, but 100% at home with my two lovely sons (5 and 3 years old) together with my husband. After a few months I started missing my job and doing my expertise instead of feeding the kids, buying bread and cooking diner....I was a full-time mother, but not happy at all.
Luckily…..I discovered Aikido and got to know fine people who practicing it and learned al lot about balance and out of balance. By movements the opponent’s balance will be broken until the very moment of his fall. A year passed, and Aikido became my escape of a jobless existence. It gave me energy to stay positive after many rejections.
Aug 2004: My youngest son was allowed to go to school and a day later I started a new job.
As if it had to be like that :-).
My agenda became fuller and the workload increased immediately, but I never find it hard to have a busy job, hobbies, family and friends. When the kids grew older and time and attention was asked in a different way, I realized that I had less time for myself.
Since many parents in my neighborhood were in the same phase, we got more and more signals from people with a burn out. Some friends or colleagues suddenly became ill for a year.... very strange and scary at the same time.
The few hours of Aikido that I practiced a week gave me a lot of relaxation and above all an excellent night's sleep. After every training/workout my full head was emptied, and I slept like a rose, so nice.
I was aware of the balance between home and work, Aikido always helped me with this.
2009: 
Our Aikido association has a board of volunteers. The chairman resigned, and I took over his position. The accounts were digitized and more automated, the overviews of the expenses became better. Unfortunately, we had to leave the sports hall. In our region there are hardly any places available for sports between 20:00 - 22:00 h. After searching and asking for more than a year, luckily a friend tipped me, and our association could use an old but beautiful location on the edge of a forest.
It was nice to invest in our Aikido association and being part of the management together with the trainers. After 9 years I have transferred this function to a new chairman, because the association has to make a new step with new fresh ideas.
2019: My children grew up and are both studying now, they are strong healthy and happy young men, my loving man also started to perform Aikido. In the meantime, I have been working for 6 years as a manufacturing engineer at a company that has approached me to work there.
Summarized: I love my husband and children, but also my active life.
I'm sure that Aikido has played a very important role in this.
I'm grateful that I have been introduced to this wonderful sport, that manages to bring balance to every individual, literally and figuratively.
Femke Jansen from Roermond, NL, 1. Dan Tendoryu Aikido, 2000
