Capoeira - The Dance of Resistance

Ayinde flying through the air at Capoeira DC Males Batizado 2013 with Mestre Corisco.

Enrolling children in a multitude of enrichment classes while there are young is very important.  Otherwise, how will they discover their gifts if they are never exposed to them?  As a part of our homeschool co-op, we always include a movement class.  For the past two years it has been Capoeira.  LionHeart took to it right away.  He didn't like Karate and he didn't like Tae Kwon Do, but Capoeira resonated with him in every way.  The drums, the Berimbau, the movements, the uniform, he loved it all.  At the end of the second year Ayinde had an opportunity to participate in a Batizado, which is a celebration of all that has been accomplished for the year.  The new initiates receive their first cord, and the more experienced students advance in cords.  What I love most about Capoeira for Ayinde are the history, culture and music.  It's a very holistic discipline that I have learned is not something that is practiced or "played" in isolation.  Instead, Capoeira is a way of life.  What an incredible gift to discover so young.  Each Capoeira community is considered a family.  Now Ayinde is a part of the Capoeira DC Males family.  The more communities that a young boy grows up a part of the more support one has in raising him into a Fine Young Man, I learned from a book with the same title written by Michael Gurian.





Another benefit of finding a child's gift early is that you can infuse all of  his learning through this interest. Many of the Capoeira moves are taught in Portuguese.  So LionHeart is learning a foreign language.  Math and science are infused in Capoeira.  We can study the geography, the food, the culture, and the music of Angola and Brazil. The learning is endless because the motivation is there.

According to the website Abibifahodie, Capoeira is an African martial art that originated as an artform of the Mbundu people of Angola where it was known as N'golo due to its similarity to the movements of the Zebras when they fought. It was associated with the male rites of passage whereby a young man who was able to best other youths of his age grade was afforded the opportunity to marry without having to pay the bridewealth. According to pre-eminent scholar of Bantu culture, Dr. Kibwandende kia Bunseki Fu-Kiau the word Capoeira itself is Afrikan and comes from the Kikongo word Kipura - to flutter around like roosters in cockfights.  You can read the full article here. 

LionHeart posing in the Jinga position with friends after the 2013 Batizado.

LionHeart, not always thrilled to take photos, pictured here with best friends aka extended family.

Lionheart is also motivated by the fact that he will grow, train and develop with some of his best friends. I get giddy with the thoughts of  them taking their children to Capoeira class. I am forever grateful to LionHeart's first instructor Morcego who understands LionHeart's fiery energy and bring out the best in him.  All Capoeiristas, as they are called, will take on a nickname.  I wonder what name Lionheart's energy will manifest?