"HKD" stands for hobo kore dojo, a Japanese phrase from Zen and martial arts. Hobo kore means "this place where you are," or "wherever you are." And dojo is a place of learning, community, and personal commitment - sometimes a physical place, but the deeper meaning is that of a space without walls; an alive space.

The entire phrase comes to mean "Each moment in life is your school, and each step you take in life has a lesson."

I first encountered the idea of hobo kore dojo when I began studying Aikido, a Japanese martial art form based on defense and compassion. The school's founder had carved this phrase in Japanese calligraphy over the dojo entrance. Six weeks after beginning my practice, I suffered a knee injury.

Through injury, surgery, and recovery, each step truly became my dojo. Ever since, hobo kore dojo has helped me keep a healthy perspective on life.